/monster/ - The Last Bastion of Romance★

>>212950

“What are we going to do next?...” You ponder over and over. Indeed you are in a very tight situation and a simple mistake could spell the deaths of both your living companions and yourself… And after what felt as an eternity, you finally come up with a plan: One you thought would give your party a greater chance of success “This isn’t a situation where we could rely on brute force; we have to do this quickly, quietly and decisively” You whisper, bringing your team closer in a circle “The longer we stay in here, the higher our chances are to set off a disaster.”

Thus, you begin to explain what the next move is going to be. Your plan, completely concise and detailed, consists in two parts which will rely greatly on Cornelius’ ghostly abilities and wit:

Firstly, you will create several distractions in the form of portable alarm runes and scented lures; Cornelius will use these to redirect the ghouls and clear the path towards the wall north of your location, all while keeping them distracted and confused with tracks leading nowhere.

Secondly, your position could be compromised by the scent trail leading right to your hiding spot, evidenced by the ghoul you had previously seen whiffing at the air around the warehouse. This, summed up with Regula’s fear of undead, could spell disaster and leave a traumatic impact on her very self. There is also a third repercussion for staying in this place for too long: Smija could take independent action and get herself hurt; you have no idea for how long you are going to stay in this hiding spot as the ghouls could very well keep stalking you after sunrise; since Smija is already worried and longing for your return, you fear her steadfastly loyal nature and affection for your person would cause her to take reckless and desperate decisions in order to bring you -and your party- back to safety. You have to move and you have to do it quickly after taking the time to make some proper preparations, a straight path to the city wall will be the best course to take. Afterwards, your party will climb the wall with either the help of telekinesis or Delwen’s ability to shrink down people and objects; carrying Inzi and yourself over the wall… Cornelius and Regula should not pose much trouble since they could just float over or through it or even walk to the main gates.

>>218238

When you are done explaining the plan, Cornelius steps in and says “Much like ghouls, wolves hunt in packs. It takes a few dead-end trails along with ‘misplaced’ smells to wreak havoc and foil their hunt. I have some experience doing such things with wolves and other predatory creatures…” He longingly smiles and sighs “Apart from being a farmer and a rancher, my father was also a trapper; He’d take my brother and me on long trips to earn extra money, and let me tell you, furs used to fetch a nice price back when we lived in Lycosia… I wasn’t very adept at it, as I had other interests such as magic and other assorted intellectual hobbies, but nevertheless I did learn several facts about hunting and fooling predatory creatures, mostly by trial and error. I suppose the same principles could be applied to ghouls… I mean, I once managed to trap a werewolf and I did so with my wits so this should be similar considering ghouls might have a higher intellect than say, wolves. I released her afterwards, the werewolf I mean, I’m not that heartless.” Cornelius then suddenly pauses and leans closer to you “So yes, sorry for trailing away. Your plan is solid and I will do my best in order to succeed; just give me a bit of time to formulate a proper course of action. I’ll be back in a few!” Afterwards disappearing through the wall, probably to check on suitable places where the runes could be placed… Regula was clearly distressed by this.

“Wish I could go out as well… Ain’t never done nuthin’ like this” Inzi says with a smirk “But I guess it’s for the best I stay with ya guys; I could get a lil’ bit excited and start a ruckus… Which could completely compromise us and I kinda don’t want that…” She then places a hand over your shoulder “So, got anything need done? I hate so sit ‘round being useless!” Indeed you had something needed done, you explain the need for a safety line for the two of you, one that would allow Delwen to guide you through the air while using telekinesis as some sort of leash. “Alrighty, ain’t the best makin’ knots but I do know a thing or two ‘bout it, especially when it comes to safety lines! Leave it all to me, Shorty.” And after handing her the rope, Inzi quickly gets to the task at hand.

Afterwards, Delwen gingerly approaches “I suppose I could make the task easier by sprinkling you both with Pixie Dust, though I don’t have much left… B-But it should be enough for a short trip!~ When coupled with telekinesis, I’m sure the upkeep could be increased. Also… There’s something I wanted to show you, please follow me.” Delwen takes you to a corner of the warehouse, under a totally inconspicuous old and dusty rug there’s a trapdoor “This leads to a cellar, does it not? At Hubby’s house there used to be a trapdoor just like this one, he stored all kinds of stuff down there and I guess this one’s similar to his’” Delwen smiles and continues “It could serve you to make those smelly lures… B-But be careful when going down, I don’t know what’s underneath” Afterwards, you inquire about the possibility of getting people inside her magically spacious bag; Delwen responds with a worried frown “I… Don’t know. Laylah can be very moody, frisky and even arbitrary at times. She asked if you were single, right? She’s kinda looking for a ‘companion’ so to speak and if you said no, she has no interest in you whatsoever… Which means she will expect something in return from her ‘hospitality’, even if I’m the one who asks for the favor and we cram a whole bunch of people inside… Also, granting wishes is off-limits, so don’t you ever ask that… It makes her mad for some reason. Still, she’s a nice gal and lets me keep this pouch--- b-bag for as long as I keep putting interesting trinkets inside! I bet she’s delighted by the cool stuff from the library!~” She pauses for a moment and continues “At any rate, I’ll take care of Regula while you prepare, don’t you worry Otho~” She then winks and floats away, you are left alone in that far corner of the building.

>>218239

You begin to prepare some emergency measures before venturing into the depths of what lies underneath the warehouse. After briefly reloading the blunderbuss with four silver balls and a bottle of holy water, you keep it readily strapped to your chest and start to craft some Cluster Firebombs, three firebombs inside a watertight leather sack; in total you made three and hung them from your belt. Later, with old cloths you found lying around, you prepared two face bandannas for Inzi and Delwen. The old rags had a faint musty smell to them, but it was far more endurable than the disgusting smell of carrion from the Ghast. After handing them over, you proceed to communicate with Oracle about the spells she is setting up:

Her hand begins to write shortly after “Mine child, I shall prepare the following spells for thee: ”

“1) The Radiant Beam thou art accustomed to; tap mine hand ONCE for casting. It can be cast up to two times. I would like to apologize beforehand (Ha!), for mine inability to cast this spell more than twice, but I simply cannot do it with all these spells prepared.”

“2) Turn undead. The affected undead (Up to seven more or less, depending on several factors such as their physical/mental constitution) will run from thee in fear of holy reprimand from our Goddess; tap mine hand TWICE for casting. Up to three uses. A word of caution: be careful who thou point this spell at, for it can and will affect thine undead companions. This spell, which travels in a straight line, can destroy undead who are ‘weak’ enough so to speak (A loosely vague definition to be sure) I cannot fully explain it without taking much of thine precious time, so I shall keep it short and concise: If said undead creature is intimidated by thine presence (or in any event: the surroundings or its general personal situation), it will surely be consumed by the holy fires of righteousness, regardless of its intentions or alignment.”

“3) A Holy Circle of Protection; tap mine hand THRICE to cast; only one use I am afraid. The best way I could describe this would be a gleaming, golden dome which will keep evil (A vague term, I dare say) away from thee. However, I am unsure about the range the spell will possess, so keep that in mind. And worry not about thine undead companions, for this spell shall only affect those with evil within their hearts (or those who intend to harm thee, whichever works.)”

“And subsequently, I shall have several tonics and ointments prepared (With the help of thine beloved Smija and our friendly Nana) to counter the effects of ghoul fever should any of thee (Goddess forbids it) be infected by said ailment. I cannot stress this enough: please stay safe and away from reckless decisions and heavy-handed actions (Unless I have a hand in it, ha ha!) Remember: We love thee, Othonios. Especially Smija, who hath now told me to write ‘I love thee you’ more than twelve times already and worry not about her; for we had a long conversation about several reasons on why she should not immediately slither in and take action against thine assailants. Take good care of the girls and come back to us in once piece. Love and kisses, Oracle… And Smija. PD: Oh, before I forget: With mine help, thou shall most certainly gain the upper hand (Ha!) against a big quantity of evil undead, remember to point the ‘Turn Undead’ spell towards those thou wish harm upon; for it possesses a wide and long range which can quite possibly affect those standing right beside thee. For more safety, have thine undead friends stand behind or away before casting. Goddess speed thee.”

With this done and after complimenting Oracle’s handiness with puns, her hand floats right towards you cheek, softly caressing it; she then tightly grabs your hand and ultimately closes back into a fist. You put it away and move onto the next task at hand: Making the lures.

>>218243

Thanks to Delwen’s curious nature, the cellar down below appears to be a prime spot for putting together the scented lures. The place itself is -after you cautiously peeked inside- completely devoid of any life, with several broken wooden boxes, old clothes and rags strewn across the floor. The cellar has no other exits whatsoever, as it is just a small room with four walls; the dank air is stale and musty, quite dead you must say. After sharing the whole liter of water inside one of your canteens, you proceed to head down below and continue with the plan.

As you take out both the hunting knife and the first-aid kit, Cornelius suddenly phases right through the roof, startling you. He informs that his plan has finally been formulated and urges you to make the lures and alarm runes before the ghouls outside catch up on your scent. After removing the left armguard and rolling up your sleeve, you tear off several pages from the notebook and proceed to make a small cut on your outer forearm, flexing your arm as hard as possible to let the blood out. After enough has come out, you smear it on the torn pages, subsequently cramming those inside the canteen. After a grand total of eleven pages were partly stained, you take one last page to neatly clean everything up, arm and canteen included, and cram said page inside the canteen before sealing it off… You then clean the cut with some rubbing alcohol from your first-aid kit and subsequently heal it using the lesser minor healing wounds spell. It works as intended and your arm no longer shows any traces of that superficial fleshwound. Cornelius then suggests you should probably take your socks off and rub them on your armpits to subsequently cram them inside the canteen along with the bloody pieces of paper… He says this is to give the lures some extra ‘strength’ since blood alone could be fairly weak considering you are traveling with two more people who also leave trails of scent of their own. However, he will not ask your female companions for any clothes or personal possessions since that would be a little creepy from his part and by his words “I’m creepy enough as an unsocial bookworm ghost; a pervert is something I don’t want to add to the list of adjectives.”

While you were busy crafting the scented lures, Cornelius took the time and effort to gather several pieces of broken wood and stones in order to turn them into alarms. Once leaving the cellar, carefully sealing the trapdoor behind, Cornelius cautiously watches as you, with your index finger, begin to trace a circle over one of the broken planks; after channeling enough mana, a small, gray circle with a ‘T’ with a slightly crooked upper line gets imprinted on the piece of wood. Cornelius takes the plank, carefully examining it and scratching his chin “Mmmh… Interesting… Etruxian Runes… This is an ancient spell you are using; where on mundus did you learn it?“ He then waves his hand dismissively “Nah don’t tell me, we’ve got no time to spare. You can tell me some other day…” Afterwards, Cornelius shoves the runed piece of wood into one of the bags you handed over. In total you made more than thirty alarms, more than plenty for what Cornelius had in mind. You drank two flasks of mana tonic shortly afterwards, which will allow you to completely restore your mana reserves in no time.

>>218244

You then reunite with the rest of the team for yet another debriefing. Cornelius proceeds to explain his interpretation of the plan you had formulated: Since the ghouls appear to have moved back to the area near Napaeca’s library (clearing the road up north) and the wind blows to the north (on your backs, which will keep ghouls from easily catching on your scent), he will firstly create dead-end trails branching off the northern road to the wall (in the ruins between the warehouse and your objective) with both scented pieces of bloody paper and several alarms forming a ‘bee-line’ of sorts, ending with a series several shorter dead-end scent trails; he theorizes ghouls will follow both the loud sounds and the faint scent, so if he is correct, the whole pack shall split, greatly increasing your chances of escape.

Afterwards, Cornelius will create even more dead-end trails, but this time using a bigger quantity of alarms instead of blood and sweat-stained papers, placing them closer to the area where the whole pack has gathered; more specifically the street between the warehouse and the library; though he will place the trails somewhat far off the road and deeper into the ruins east and west (Also placing several small pieces of scented paper branching off to short trails leading nowhere once the dead-end trail of alarm runes finishes). By his words, this will be used as first line of defense for distracting the nearby ghouls (if they decide to search north of the library) and the second set of dead end trails --the ones between the warehouse and the wall- will be used as a ‘plan B’ of sorts, en emergency measure which will be automatically triggered if the ghouls manage to follow the trail when heading to the warehouse.

And right before Cornelius leaves, you run the entire idea of the floating safety line comprised of Inzi and yourself, guided by Delwen and enhanced by a sprinkle of magical Pixie Dust. After a short demonstration -without the use of Delwen’s magical powder- you accomplish to stay afloat for several minutes; allowing Delwen to guide you through the air as she could hardly contain herself from chuckling…

>>218245

When done, Cornelius gives you a reassuring thumbs up and compliments on both your creativity and ingenuity when it comes to formulating plans… “Despite his apparent age, Cornelius is a man of vast knowledge; while he may not be the nicest person around, he surely is someone you can count on… P-Please take care, Cornie.” These were Regula’s ‘farewell’ words to him, she spoke with such awe and affection it compelled Cornelius to give her a big hug and a kiss on her cheek.

And so, you approach Cornelius and deeply thank him for his good work and assistance. He chuckles, dismissively waving his hand “Don’t thank me yet Otho… Do so after this whole ordeal is over and besides… I’m in debt with you and your party after all; what else could I do? I don’t say this very often, but I do have a lot of respect for you,” He then smiles, adding “Leave the rest to me… Stay safe and take care of yourselves until I come back. Don’t waste this opportunity, because today we have been blessed by Auster, the southerly wind!” After firmly shaking your hand Cornelius begins to climb up the ladder to the second floor, opening the window above and jumping off with the bag of alarms and the canteen at hand…

“H-He’s so brave and selfless… I-I love him…” Regula sniffs, wiping a ghostly tear off her cheek.

In the dead stillness of the night your party awaits for Cornelius’ return. The streets outside are calm and only the howling wind can be heard… Cornelius suddenly phases right through one of the walls, startling your whole party. He nods once and informs you the traps have been set up, the north is clear and devoid of any creatures, so the trip should be relatively safer than you thought. Once again you quickly peek from the half-opened door, the street remains as dead as it ever was; this fact was also affirmed by Inzi who flicked her tongue several times just to be extra sure.

>>218246

Thus, after shutting and securing the heavy warehouse doors, your party begins moving quite close to each other and as silently as the situation allowed, Cornelius went several meters ahead, scouting the area for any enemies. You took the same precautions from before, casting both the weak frost aura and the darkvision spells, as well as keeping your already loaded blunderbuss and handful of silver-coated pistol balls ready to be thrown with telekinesis.

After several minutes of careful sneaking, you begin to see what appears to be the outline of a humongous wall, rising tall in the horizon way above the ruined buildings. You must be perhaps halfway through your goal and the best part is that you have not encountered any unpleasantries, be them in the form of ghouls or other assorted hindrances. “Th-Those are the walls of the inner city! We’re saved!” Regula gasps as quietly as she could. Indeed those are the same old, beaten-up and crumbling walls you remember: reddish stone bricks old enough to become weathered by the sandy winds…

As your party traverses what is left of the ruined street, the uneasy calmness and the faint howling of the austral winds are suddenly broken by several sinister, bone-chilling vocalizations echoing from the south (between the library and warehouse), soon followed by a sundry of loud rattles from the alarm runes. It appears the ghouls --just as Cornelius had said- caught a whiff of your scent, which prompted one of the alarms near the road to trigger; And just as Cornelius suggested, you tried to pay no mind to the crazed, ravenous wails and triggered alarms, your objective was clear: Reaching the wall as quickly and silently as you could.

And a few more minutes later, your party finally reaches the wall. Of perhaps ten meters of height, the imposing --yet somewhat derelict- walls stand tall before you. You also spy several faint lights coming from behind the bastion; you have finally reached the inhabited part of Napaeca.

“Q-Quick quick!” Regula desperately pulls your arm “W-We must climb it! I-I don’t wanna die Otho!” she sobs and trembles with fear.

>>218247

Delwen -by her own initiative and before Cornelius could even test if the wall was magically warded- begins to fly at a higher altitude seeking to reach the top and perhaps to spy what is on the opposite side of the fortifications… And as she is about to pass above the parapets, Delwen abruptly crashes into seemingly thin air. The impact sent a small shockwave of sorts through the nearby air, revealing a magical barrier faintly shimmering with many tones of teal.

“Owie…” Delwen complains after reducing her size and landing over Inzi’s shoulder, rubbing her head with a somewhat pained expression she says “It seems that Mr. Cornelius forgot to mention the wall was warded by a spell… O-Or maybe he didn’t even know it was warded…”

“C-C-C-Cornelius y-y-you w-were wrong?! Y-You were wrong for once… W-We can’t fly above the wall! Th-This is bad! Y-You’ve never been wrong! Wh-What are we going to do now?!” Regula falls over her knees and latches onto Cornelius’ ghostly robe, desperately shaking him while trying to keep her voice the lowest.

“I-I apologize, but I had no time to reach the wall itself and check if it was safe to cross!” Cornelius appears to be clearly distressed and somewhat downcast after testing the wall himself, his whole body bounced off right before it could float through. He adds “How foolish of me, I should’ve foreseen this… City walls tend to be guarded by magical barriers and this is nothing new, yet I failed to see it… Th-This… This is really all my fault… But I’m sure you have a contingency plan in case something the likes of this occurred, right Othonios?” He then looks at you somewhat nervously.

And then… If the situation was not tense enough, the sound of more alarms being triggered echo from afar followed by a cacophony of angered grunts and wails; each time progressively closer to your location but still far away enough to allow you formulate a quick contingency plan. You calculated the grunts to come from the area near or around (but not past) the warehouse, a couple hundred meters away from your location.

>What do you do now?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>218248

Fucken run for that gate fam

Or else find out if we could bargain with Laylah for something other than our semen to get Delwen to fly us to the gate well over the Ghouls.

>>218248

Other than quietly running along the wall until we get to where we need to be going, I don't have much of an idea.

>>218290

11. Of course, get everyone else off the building before blowing it up.

12. Reserve radiant beam for blasting the ghast in the face if it gets too close.

13. Huh. I thought the flashbangs would be useless against the ghouls since they have terrible vision, but in the description of the flashbangs it says specifically that they're effective against undead. Well, depending on what Otho remembers about that…. It might be possible to use them to distract or harm the ghouls. Hand them out and use them as weapons or distractions based on what Otho remembers about that, but careful to use them in a way that it won't harm our ghost buddies. Who knows? Could use them to spice up the deathtrap and turn it into a palace of the sun? We have a lot of flashbangs. Ghouls seem to really dislike sunlight, since they don't come out during the day. I only found that one hint about flashbangs in their description. I don't have enough information to work with, just that little hint. It sounds like they'll be useful for ghoul crowd control.

14. All of this is unnecessary if it's possible to just sneak to the gate. This is the 'no escape' option.

Welp, 'no escape' was my impression since we're stuck between a wall and a ghoul place. They're already in a pack, so killing a single ghoul by itself to erase our scent would be difficult. They now know exactly where we are, so hiding is going to be out of the question. They'd track us down in a matter of minutes. Escaping till we hit the gate is going to be hard if we have to travel a long distance, since they're undead and the meatbags are going to tire out.

>>218308

That plan may very well be crazy enough to kill us all

>>218309

It'll be fine anon. Otho just has to channel his inner murder machine once again.

I'm scared anon. But the only thing you can do in this kind of situation is to cover it up with bravado. Good thing we asked skelemom to set up those healing supplies. We're probably going to need them.

>>218308

>>218309

To put things in perspective anon, it takes an average human male about 60 or 70 seconds to run 300 meters. That ghoul pack is a couple of hundred meters away from us. They're right on top of us.

>>218290

the killzone firebomb plan was MY idea and i think this is retarded go back to back go for the gate and telekinetically propel anything that rushes the group into near orbit and use tele/k/nesis to throw cluster bombs at grouped enemies

>>218323

Firebombs were the contingency plan. That's why OP set it up. Cornelius specifically asked what the contingency plan was.

You should be happy; the circumstances changed to make your firebomb idea useful. This isn't a competition anon.

Running to the gate would work if it's close enough, but when we start fighting ghouls, we start slowing down. Unfortunately, humanoids can't rotate their torso 360 degrees and fight while running in the opposite direction. But the ghouls chasing us? They aren't going to slow down. They just have to run in our direction until they reach us. Eventually, more and more ghouls are going to start circling in around us. The problem is distance. The only thing buying us time at this point is all the buildings around us cluttering things up.

If they're too close, we're already trapped; it just isn't blatantly obvious yet. We just have a short delay before they reach us.

I asked myself, how long do we have before the ghouls get to us? 200 meters is around two football field lengths right? We have a good amount of distance to go hide again right?

And then I looked up the time it would take a normal human to travel that distance in a run… 60 to 70 seconds… actually 2/3 of that.. If there were a straight line of sight between us and the ghouls, the fight would already be on.

So, probably not enough time to hide and use the lure and distraction plan again. Can't take out a ghoul to hide our scent because they're already clustered.

I already suggested we start running for the gate sneakily, but it looks like they're going to catch up and we can't hide without the circumstances changing.

So, we have these options:

1. Distract

2. Trap

3. Fight

Fighting is obviously the least desirable option.

Distract them… We don't have time to set up a distraction unless we hide again. I though of setting a building on fire… But since Cornelius can't instantaneous teleport 300 meters in the opposite direction we need to travel then that wouldn't work… And the ghouls would probably still chase after the scent.

Ok, so trap. I suggested during the run, if there's a chokepoint, then use that to create a blockade to slow them down. But they'll just climb over that. You have to use something as a deterrent like fire. Optimally, if it's just one of them, then don't use anything like that at all. Keep it perfectly stealthy and quiet.

But I don't think Otho and Inzi could take out 6 or 7 ghouls without Otho using something that makes a ton of noise at the very least.

Fighting them, using firebombs or flashbangs or even the blunderbuss or pistol, it's a bad idea in general. I went into length on the last thread why it's incredibly dangerous.

The ideal solution would be to get out of here quickly and quietly… But there isn't a time to put together another scent and lure distraction… We don't even seem to have the tools or time to set up any other kind of distraction.

And beating them without a force multiplier like packing them into a building and then setting it on fire would be difficult, if not impossible.

But I'm glad you called that idea retarded, because that got me to thinking.

I went through the inventory again, and then it came to me. We have holy water, and caltrops… Caltrops wouldn't be terribly effective by themselves, but we could pour the holy water into the box of caltrops… But that'd only be enough to delay a group of ghouls silently at one choke point… And it's have to be pretty small… Maybe a doorway or a room. It's only 20 caltrops. From what I've seen, the average caltrop will fit in the palm of your hand.

I also thought about escaping from building to building using the floating plan, but how long can we do that before Otho and Delwen become exhausted? Also, floating like that is slow as hell, completely unrealistic.

That's it. Fug, both of those ideas are weak. Yep, basically we're screwed.

I came up with a plan where I try to effectively use all the tools OP gave us. If we're going to be forced to fight them, then turn it into an ambush on our own terms.

This is one of those whoops situations, the consequence of a badly timed critfail.

>>218335

>rotate human torso 360 degrees while fighting backwards

I know that 180 degrees is the opposite orientation from forward. At the time I was thinking of a human being rotating their torso on top of their legs in a full circle like some kind of weird mech. My sleep addled mind thought it was hilarious for some reason.

don't forget we have turn undead and those other spells available

>>218342

Skelemom really came through for us. Those spells are going to save our bacon.

I just realized something. Inzi is going to excel in this plan. Lots of fire? She's a salamander. She's going to be practically in her element. I don't know how far OP's salamander's can go, but in some author's stories they can go skinny dipping in lava. Also, if ghouls work off heat vision, the fire is going to be blinding to them. Not only that, thermal vision relies off contrast. In the cold night, we show up like giant beacons because everything else is much colder, but the moment you start throwing around heat like that, it's going to be harder and harder for them to accurately target us.

The more fire we have flying around, the more disoriented the ghouls are going to get and the stronger Inzi is going to get. We can set a place on fire then Inzi can just go waltzing in there and finish off the burning and disoriented ghouls.

Not only that, ghouls apparently have some kind of weakness to light. (Our flashbangs, although a more accurate description of them would be 'lightbombs'… Real flash'bang's make a ton of sound, and that hurts worse than the light. If you're close enough to one of those things, it'll feel like your eardums got blown out and you'll get a nasty case of tinnitus. Otho's flashbangs only make a ton of light, but apparently it's ?radiant? light so they hurt undead. More useful than a loud sound would be in this case.)

Also, looking at the description of the firebombs.. I didn't see much about the alchemical reaction works… But it seems like they're going to have to be put in a different containers or poured out around the building… Or put into flammable containers, like the bags etc.. But honestly, if we can trap all the ghouls in one tall building, and then turn the first floor into a deathtrap, then all we need to do is to have everyone throw firebombs at the building after that. We just need to trap them in there, and then set the building on fire.

>>218464

And clean up any of the injured and disoriented ones that try to escape.

>>218248

The pressure is nigh palpable as the anxiety grows within those in your team, especially Regula, who now appears to be close to a nervous breakdown. Desperate situations call for desperate measures, and the only thing going through your head is reaching the city’s gates as fast as you could; “Run to the gates!” You exclaim and almost immediately your whole team begins to run away as the macabre wails shorten their distance between you.

With horrifying screams and triggered alarms echoing from afar, to this added the suspense and uncertainty of the situation, coming up with a fairly reasonable plan proves to be difficult. As your team traverses a narrow street between the towering wall and the derelict buildings, you inquire between pants “How far should the gate be?”

“I-I can’t remember! I-I-I don’t know!” Regula stutters, who --despite wearing a long toga- is way ahead of you thanks to the longer stride her legs allow; she carries Cornelius over her shoulder in a very comical manner.

“Too far… I know exactly where we are…” Cornelius responds with worry, looking directly into your eyes “At this rate I don’t think we stand much of a chance…”

Then, suddenly stopping on your tracks, you say with preoccupation “I see… So it’s come to this…” A crooked smile comes across your face, adding “We need a flammable building, VERY flammable.”

Cornelius, already on the ground after forcing his way out of Regulas grasp, ponders for a moment… A few seconds later he responds with an answer “Eryunwel’s wooden imports! There used to be a workshop nearby… Lots of boxes and flammable elven crafts! If we keep going through this street… And then turn right on the 88th row…” Then, with utmost decisiveness, he exclaims “Follow me!”

Thus, led by Cornelius, your team keeps moving eastwards. Several hundred meters ahead, with a turn to the right (south), pass a narrow street and a turn to the left (east), you reach a particularly wide avenue going east and lined with tall, two-story buildings on each side. Cornelius keeps pushing further into the ruined road until he suddenly stops and signals to the left (north).

>>219268

A beautiful, yet somewhat derelict, building lies before you. Classical elven architecture: Two stories, white plaster, its wooden frame seemingly grown from a living tree, possessing a very ornate gabled roof --with missing leaf-shaped tiles here and there- and stained glass windows shaped like the wings of an insect; rather than a mere workshop, this structure resembles a religious temple… It also has a rather big balcony coming out of one of the roof slopes, crucial in the plan you hastily cooked up. Around the haughty workshop are located several other buildings, still standing strong with brick walls and completely flat roofs.

Once inside the elven workshop, and after carefully and quickly checking around… You come across a big quantity of planks, boxes, lots of dust and several otherwise useless wooden elven trinkets such as figurines and statues, scattered strangely arranged in one corner of the room. Seems that whoever looted this place made you a big favor in gathering all the flammable stuff in one place.

With all the previous plans come and gone, it’s time to use a rather extreme contingency measure… Magnificently. Taking out all of the Firebombs (5), Cluster Bombs (3) and Flashbangs (15), you proceed to explain what the strategy will consist in: trapping most -if not all- the ghouls (which from Cornelius’ words were about several dozens, most likely around thirty or forty with the Ghast included) inside the highly flammable workshop. The structure will be rigged to explode with a simple network of firebombs. Inzi later suggested you should also use several dragonshots (7 out of 14) ‘just for the heck of it, it’s gonna be better this way‘, you noticed Inzi was quite excited upon hearing your plan, perhaps she will now obtain the thrill she so much longed for.

You then approach Regula, who teeters on the edge of a nervous breakdown, and tightly hold her hand. Calmly smiling, you assure her “Everything will be fine, Regula. You’re a ghost and you will be safe… Ghouls can’t hurt you after all. But I take it you’re a bit worried about their presence, aren’t you?” Regula does a sad frown and nods “Your friend Otho is going to show you just how to handle ghouls; but you have to calm down first, understood?” She silently nods again, wiping a ghostly tear off her cheek “Good, you and Cornelius will be fine, I can assure you.”

“B-But what about you a-and everyone else?” She inquires with worry.

“I will see that both Inzi and Delwen stay safe. We need clear minds to pull this off.” You respond, quickly dismissing both Delwen and Regula off to the balcony.

>>219269

After piling up all the flammable debris in two strategic locations on the ground floor -A cluster firebomb, thee flashbangs (which release radiant light and can harm exposed undead, as well as temporarily blind and ‘stun’ living beings), two dragonshots on each- you make a beeline of sorts with two additional dragonshots leading to the entrance, piling up even more debris to the sides of the door, as well as a bit more outside the building.

Inzi then, quite excitedly, approaches and urges you to check to the upper floor. Literally lifting you off your feet and carrying you up to the floor above, she points to several heavy-looking boxes “Otho, there’s like ten boxes all filled with sawdust! Do ya know what this means?!” She then does something seemingly unthinkable, at least for someone such as herself, Inzi cutely squeals in excitement “Fun! A bigger explosion! Let’s do this! Let’s do it letsdoitletsdoitletsdoit! Oh shit the explosion will be so big, the old man’s gonna be proud of me!”

“What? Who?” You inquire somewhat confused.

“The Patron God of my tribe! The Lord of Fire, The Turquoise Flame, The Light in the Darkness, The Angry Mountain, The Burning Spirit-Dragon…” She gives you a broad, excited smile and mutters something in Drakainaon; a grunt, a hiss and a strange vocalization “Xiuhtecuhtli! That’s how ya pronounce his name! I’ll finally be able to do the ritual! And at the most unexpected moment! I’ll finally get recognition for even more ass-kickin’!” She then grabs your hand, forcibly dragging you to the big pile of boxes “C’mon let’s do this shit, I’ll help ya out! This is gonna be a BLAST! What I couldn’t do with that stupid demon I’m gonna do it with these poor ghoul sods, ten times ten! You’ll see!”

You were not sure what was going on, or what she was even talking about, but you followed through. Piled up the big boxes all full of sawdust right in the middle of the room and placed a firebomb near it, as well a couple more dragonshots (well-concealed and out of reach): one right in front of the pile, one in the stairs leading to the ground floor and one near the door to the balcony. If your plan successfully comes to fruition, the flames shall cook everything inside the building.

>>219271

Once on the rooftop balcony and with all things quickly done, the very unnerving cries getting progressively closer, you approach Regula “So, how do you feel? With this whole situation and the hard reality you are now experiencing, you must feel stressed, right?” She sighs and nods in response; you add “How about you let it all out? What’s on your heart, the way you feel. Clear your mind a bit; I’m sure you’ll feel better once you do. Please shout as much as you can, let the world, and those ghouls, hear you out…”

Regula shyly stands up, looking at Cornelius as if she were asking for his permission. He nods with a smile, telling her to go ahead; Regula takes a deep breath and begins to scream her lungs out “AAAHHH! ALL I SOUGHT WAS A PEACEFUL LIFE! I WANTED PEACE, I WANTED QUIET! MY WHOLE WORLD CAME TO AN END AND I DIDN’T EVEN NOTICE!” breaking into tears and continuing “L-LEAVE US ALONE! G-GO AWAY! LEAVE MY FRIENDS ALONE!” then, Regula falls on her knees, grabbling Cornelius’ shoulders while sobbing profusely “I wanted to marry… I-I wanted to have children and perhaps die of old age with someone I love by my side… BUT NOW LOOK AT ME! I’M NO LONGER EVEN SURE WHAT I AM! C-Cornelius… P-Please promise you will stay with me. P-Please. I’m scared… I really am…” Burying her face on Cornelius’ chest shortly afterwards. Cornelius lovingly embraces Regula, who is making a lot of noise as she loudly cries and wails… Causing the not-so-distant ghouls to let out horrific shrieks.

You reload the blunderbuss with one dragonshot and a firebomb; this shot will be used to trigger the chain reaction so crucial in your plan. And so, shortly after, you spy some movement on the nearby debris down in the streets “They’ve come!” You shout in readiness, bracing for impact…

>>219272

The broad street down below is suddenly flooded by a huge mob of ravenous ghouls, perhaps more than forty in total. Between maddened howls and cries, their stench carries off to the top of the building; the smell of carrion and death impregnate the nearby air. Then, just as you expected, the mob of mangy, starved humanoids begins to pour into the building; like a stampede of wild animals, some of them stomping over their brethren, others climbing to reach the upper windows. Truly a scene of the apocalypse.

But now is not the time to falter with despair, grabbing Oracle’s hand, you tap it thrice and… Her bony palm opens, glowing with a golden hue. Several strange markings appear out of thin air and form a circle around your party with a radius of perhaps one and a half meters, then, from Oracle’s hand, a strange, transparent silken fabric begins to unravel; it shines and glistens with a golden tone similar to Oracle’s eyes, and finally forms a dome, encasing your party within. Oracle’s hand gives you an ‘OK’ sign after the spell is cast. Seems that this is it, neither Regula nor Cornelius appear to be adversely affected by the spell. In fact, Cornelius is awestruck by the display of Oracle’s magical ability, seemingly forgetting about the gravity of the situation as he carefully examines the transparent silken barrier.

And so, the ghouls finally reach the upper floor and proceed to bang on the heavy door that leads to the rooftop balcony. Deathly scared, Regula tightly embraces Cornelius; with eyes closed she latches onto him as they both begin to float away towards a strong-looking building to the south… Delwen soon follows behind.

As they fly away, the ghouls finally break the set of doors leading to the balcony. A few crash against Oracle’s barrier, bouncing off and falling down to their dooms. Before they get to overrun the already cramped balcony, you prepare a blast of telekinesis in order to help Inzi reach the other building; with an all-clear, you channel some mana and push her with significant force. “Aaaahhhahaa!!” Inzi excitedly exclaims as she flies through the air like a cannonball, ultimately crashing with the rooftop of the contiguous building. She skids and rolls for several meters all while tightly grabbing her unsheathed claymore; seems that you used a bit too much force to propel her… And worse enough she did not seem to mind at all! As Inzi stands back on her feet, arranging her nose back in place and spitting some blood, she gives you a thumbs up and exclaims “That was fuckin’ amazing!” as a small strain of blood comes from her nose.

Amidst the crazed howls and growling creatures lecherously staring at you like a hunk of meat, a single female ghoul approaches and tries to ram her clawed hand through the barrier… It glows gold and then explodes in gore, causing her to scream in agony. The rest of the pack soon follows, letting out ear-shattering shrieks which send goosebumps down your spine. Quickly peeking down to the street, you notice the quantity of ghouls has diminished from several dozens to perhaps ten; the weak, slow and dumb are left behind to their own demise… It is time for the next step of your master plan: crashing this building, with no survivors! (other than your party.)

Placing Oracle’s hand back into your pocket, the spell still active --it seems that the center of the dome itself is Oracle’s hand, as the barrier appears to be mobile- you begin to concentrate some more, although with some difficulty due to the horrible cacophony of maddened wails.

“Don’tcha worry, I’m gonna catch you!” Inzi exclaims from the distance. Crouching and taking a deep breath, you channel mana down to your feet and jump…

>>219273

You get blasted off at a ludicrously speed right towards the next building. As you traverse to the air, time appears to flow in slow motion; the ghouls try their best to grab you, but utterly fail with a few of them falling down to the street. You take yet another deep breath and cock the blunderbuss’ hammer back… Softly pulling the trigger and blasting off a huge ball of fire, burning the ghouls in the balcony and setting off the dragonshot near the door, subsequently triggering the whole trap inside the building. The recoil from the blast helps you travel a bit faster and then, before you could even blink, the distance between Inzi and yourself shortens… She receives you with open arms and feet solidly planted on the rooftop.

With much skill and not so much finesse, you finally collide with Inzi. Her feet slide along the floor and she ultimately falls on her butt, it suffices to say you are safe, a bit bruised, but safe nevertheless. Then, in the distance, the ghoul-ridden building suddenly explodes, bursting into high roaring flames. Charred bodyparts and gore fly through the air, as well as the pained wails of those still trapped inside echo all over the place… The blast, soon followed by a severe heat wave, collides with the building you are located in, causing it to shake as if an earthquake had just occurred.

The loud explosion left your ears ringing, and as you come back to your senses, you get off of Inzi --as you fell over her after colliding- and stretch a hand to help her up. She however, does not respond… With mouth agape, Inzi is stupefied at the raging fires consuming the late elven workshop. Her breathing strained, her red eyes gleaming and… A strain of viscous clear liquid can be seen on her inner left thigh.

Oracle’s barrier is still up and running, protecting both your team and yourself from the falling, gory debris. You felt it was appropriate to do a snarky remark about the current situation but ultimately could not find a proper witty comment and instead said “So uh… Ghouls aren’t so scary after all, right Regula?” Regula silently gazes upon you, as if you were some kind of madman who just blew up a piece of elven architecture and came out unscathed.

“Th-Th… Th-That was amazing, Shorty…” Inzi sighs in awe as she stands up “Boy, that was somethin’… I think I got a little bit too excited too…” Her big, meaty hand pats your back with lots of force.

Suddenly, a louder, bellowing scream came down from the street. Amidst the disgusting scent of charred undead meat, a sharp, pungent stench made its way through all the way up to the contiguous building you are located in. Inzi flicks her tongue several times and her confused expression soon morphs into an excited grin “It’s finally here! The Ghast!”

A hulking creature roams the street below. A male humanoid of considerable height, perhaps two and a half meters tall, and very heavily built. Muscular arms, pale and bruised greenish skin with light patches of black fur, red glowing eyes and three long tongues hanging from his gaping mouth… Clad in a rusted set of tattered pieces of both bronze and steel armor, as well wielding a rusted poleaxe, the creature roars while stomping the ground. He is mad, he is big… He is… The dreaded Ghast. The leader of the pack; a formidable opponent for sure. He appears to be a goblin of some sort --from his sharp facial features, pointy nose and chin- but far bigger.

“A Bugbear…” Inzi mutters. Grabbing your poncho, she pulls you closer and with teeth grinned roars “Shorty, you gotta blast me off to the flaming building! Do it!” violently shaking you afterwards “Do it! Do it! I need it! I NEED IT!”

>>219429

Both Regula and Delwen appear to be fine; a bit strained, but otherwise fine. Cornelius is deep in thought assessing the situation. And Inzi is biting her lip so hard, blood comes out it; she appears to be muttering something unintelligible, doing so with a somewhat catchy rhythm… Is she chanting? You are not too sure. She sways her hips side to side in some sort of dance.

The Ghast down in the street seems to not have noticed your presence yet. Both he and his pack --of about ten humanoid ghouls now- are desperately looking around in clues of what had happened, examining the charred remains of their fallen comrades all while staying away from the flaming building, they appear to be disoriented by the heat. Pained screams can still be heard coming from the deathtrap. The area around is filled (as far as the eye can see) with tall, two-story buildings of the same kind you are standing in, somewhat closely knit together.

>What do you do?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>219430

I'm pretty sure not launching Inzi would qualify as orgasm denial and that ain't my fetish.

See if we can launch her to a spot where she's approaching the pack from the building, so her heat is masked by the fire. Then jump down and start hacking away at the lesser ghouls, leaving the ghast for her. We've got a good long melee weapon perfect for zombie killing, we should put it to use.

Though we should also make sure we finish this up ASAP, that explosion could attract more from miles out.

>>219479

Wait, the leftover ghouls are still in there. That wouldn't work. And it was such a nice image I had in my head.

Well, what the hell? Set another building on fire! We're on a roll today and we got firebombs to burn!

tfw update tomorrow

sorry for the delay

>>219430

“C’mon dude! Send me off to the flames! We’re losing time!” Inzi complains while grabbing the neck of your padded coat. Her expression appears deranged as a small strand of drool runs from one corner of her mouth.

“Fine, fine! But I’ll only do it if you think you can pull this off…” You respond. Then, quite concerned, you inquire about the vulnerability she could possess towards a raging fire; to which Inzi mockingly scoffs, assuring you she was born in the molten flames of the Angry Mountain and molded by the ever-burning timbers of the Forest of Ash… It would take a great deal of heat to do her any harm, something only possible by the gods and spirits themselves… Or to an extent, powerful Dragons.

“Ain’t that enough?” She smugly grins, “I’m a big girl; I can take care of myself! Even if ya blast me with dragonshot or hurl a firebomb at me, I’d be fine! As right as sulphur rain. Although the shockwave would probably fuck me up, but that’s a different thing anyways. Now SEND ME OFF, I’M READY!” Inzi leans and whispers to your ear in a somewhat threatening --yet devilishly playful- tone “Ya don’t wanna be near me when I get frisky~…”

With all worries assured and taken care of, you gather the team for yet another quick debriefing. Inzi will be sent off to the flaming building to put whatever ghouls are still inside out of their suffering. The pack, and the Ghast, outside will be distracted with the use of flashbangs (to which Cornelius assures should not pose any harm as long as he is outside of their effective range; you have no idea what their ‘effective range’ is, but - judging by their size- he seems pretty confident the radius should be from three to six meters) Then, with the help of Oracle’s turn undead spell, the Ghast and ghouls will be forced into the building to be taken care of by Inzi… The entrance of the flaming workshop will be littered with caltrops doused in holy water (Cornelius warns if the heat is too great, the holy water will evaporate; though some radiant particles could remain on the caltrops, still making them fairly effective), any ghouls trying to escape will be dealt with by yourself, either by melee or sniped by Oracle’s radiant beam and dragonshots…

Inzi hurriedly drags you to the edge of the rooftop, “Push me as hard as you can, I’ll be fine! To the count of three, let’s do this!” taking a few steps back and, in readiness, she assumes a sprinting stance; legs ready, hands on the ground and her sheathed claymore slung over her back. One… Two… Three… Inzi begins sprinting with great speed, not even one second had passed before she set her feet right at the edge and with a quick crouch, she launched herself into the air; at this very moment --after she jumped off- you quickly pushed her with telekinesis, blasting her off like a bullet. Inzi travels through the air at a stupidly high speed, positioning her strong feet to collide with a nearby window… With a cheerful, joyous shout soon followed by the sound of breaking glass, Inzi finally reaches the burning workshop; the sound of raging fires and the painful cries of the ghouls trapped inside, Inzi’s maniacal cackles could also be heard echoing around “Ain’tcha proud of me old man?! This sacrifice is for you!” along with loud hissings and strange roaring vocalizations, she is speaking in her native tongue it seems.

>>220917

And almost immediately, your party hurriedly rushed down to the streets through a very decayed wooden ladder inside the building; with both ghouls and Ghast disoriented after throwing two flashbangs at them, you snuck to a contiguous building (west) on the opposite side of the street…

Quickly soaking the box of caltrops with the contents of one bottle of holy water, you hand them over to Delwen who will be spreading them across the entrance once the ghouls are pushed inside the deathtrap. Cornelius refrained from taking any actions, as --by his judgement- he saw you had the situation under control… Instead, he would provide Regula with solace and comfort as she much needs it; the poor girl is a nervous mess and in this dire situation, it would be best if someone stayed behind providing psychological support for those in need.

With the blunderbuss now reloaded -with a dragonshot- and Oracle’s hand tightly held and ready to cast any spell, you step out of the ruined building to confront the stragglers. “YOU WANT A PIECE OF THIS?!” You yell with a deep and threatening tone, pointing both the blunderbuss and Oracle’s hand right at the very distressed ghouls and Ghast… Once they take notice of your presence, they begin to howl akin to ravenous wolves, drooling and showing their pointy teeth… But keeping themselves at a distance, they are cautious and are very well aware of the danger you pose.

The burly Bugbear takes one step in front of his badly-battered pack, is he protecting them? That hardly matters right now… He begins to growl while showing his pointy teeth in a very intimidating manner. Tired from this sudden display of courage, as well as the whole struggle in general, you decide to put an end to it. Tapping Oracle’s hand twice whilst pointing it at your opponents, a radiant beam of both sky blue and golden lights comes forth; with a loud detonation and a very harsh flash of light, the area to your sides and front are filled with floating golden embers… Three of the ghouls let out very pained screeches after collapsing into the ground, covering their eyes and weakly flailing their legs about. They then begin to be consumed by a golden flame just like the ones inside Oracle’s empty eye sockets…

The rest of the pack -upon seeing this gruesome and obscene display of holy magic- begins to shake in fear, all taking a few steps back. Stepping to the front, you point the blunderbuss right at them and with your feet firmly planted on the ground -as well as properly holding your firearm with both hands and butt resting between your pectoral and shoulder- you softly pull the trigger… Yet another roaring ball of fire comes out. As the fires hit their pale skins, even more of them --three to be exact- begin to be consumed by the holy embers still lingering in the air… The Ghast, as well as the four remaining ghouls, proceed to skittishly tremble all while taking steps away from you.

Unaware of their current position --and still under the effects of Oracle’s spell- the ghouls and Ghast keep walking backwards ever closer to the flaming building. You suddenly begin to run right towards them while quickly throwing a flashbang in their general direction… As they shriek and cower in fear of the crazy man with a gun and shiny magic, the pack inadvertently walks right into the flaming building behind, disappearing inside a thick cloud of smoke. And almost immediately, Delwen flies in, scattering the box of caltrops right at the very entrance of the burning structure. You hand wew her over Oracle’s hand whilst quickly reloading the blunderbuss with yet another dragonshot, and drawing the goedendag on your right hand.

>>220918

From the insides of the building, Inzi can be heard grunting and slashing, all while yelling obscenities in both Drakainaon and the common Helleromani tongue. So fierce was Inzi’s onslaught the whole building began to quake… One side of the roof had collapsed, causing several --about five you counted- straggling ghouls to flee from the fires; once they reach the entrance, and with a few of them stepping on the holy magic-imbued caltrops, with both the blunderbuss and Delwen’s help wielding the hand of Lady Oracle –casting Radiant Beam once- they were swiftly dealt with.

Suddenly, you hear a thunderous as well as intimidating saurian roar; the whole building then begins to quake even more, causing the upper floor to completely collapse. This prompted a whole dozen of ghouls to rush outside, most of which were badly burnt, limping and few with their limbs missing. Surrounded by angry ghouls, you did your best effort to keep them at bay: blasting a few with dragonshot and bashing a few others with the goobersitck. Indeed your weapon is seemingly adequate to deal with the undead -or with any other living being for that matter- its spikes are long enough to penetrate skulls, tracheas and armor as well, and its length and spiked top allows you to thrust it as a pike. Delwen also did her best blasting them off with Oracle’s radiant beam, as well as with the turn undead spell; a few ghouls burnt to a crisp with the holy fires of righteousness.

With most of the ghouls already dealt with, you suddenly, and without a notice, get knocked back; off your feet and into the ground. As you quickly recover your senses, you notice the Ghast had somehow escaped the deathtrap, badly burnt, slashed and scarred, missing a few fingers on his left hand as well as missing one of his droopy ears. With one hand he menacingly wields a big poleaxe, looming right over your head and threatening your integrity. Prone on the ground and with an unloaded blunderbuss, your only chance right now is to bash him with the goedendag, when suddenly…

>>220919

The building behind completely falls apart in an explosion of fire… From the raging flames and broken walls comes a very angry Inzi, letting out bellowing roars. Her whole body is engulfed in fire, so much that her skimpy armor is now red-hot. As she approaches whilst stomping on the ground, she growls “YOU FUCKIN’ COWARD GET AWAY FROM HIM! COME BACK HERE, WE AIN’T DONE YET!” The ghoulified Bugbear shakes in fear…

He then starts to run away in a very comical manner, holding onto the rusted poleaxe as if his un-life depended on it. For something his size and constitution, he moves fairly too nimbly, but he is no match for Inzi… She begins to run right behind him. You too soon followed after getting back on your feet and Delwen tailed closely behind you.

After following both of them for quite the distance, you reach a wide blind alley. The wretched Ghast cowers in fear, and after letting his poleaxe go, he begins to climb up a wall seeking to run away. This prompts Inzi to become further enraged; the flames around her are now as strong as those on the burning elven workshop right after the initial explosion, “NOT SO TOUGH ANYMORE, BIG BOY?” Inzi roars “Pickin’ on helpless folk, huntin’ ‘em down like animals and scaring the ectoplasm outta that poor ghost girl… AIN’T THAT JUST DANDY?”

The Ghast falls down from halfway through, lading on his butt; Inzi slowly approaches whislt extruding lots of heat… Then, suddenly and with lots of courage seemingly gathered from nowhere, the Bugbear stands up. With nothing else to lose he lunges at Inzi with his right hand, seeking to slash her with his long, deadly claws. But Inzi is having none of that, she catches the Dugbear’s wrist right before the claws connect with her face, and with herculean strength, she rips his hand off, “I’M GONNA GUT YOU WITH YOUR OWN FUCKIN’ HAND!” She says after getting sprayed with blood and kicking the Ghast right in the gut which launches him towards the wall behind.

As she approaches, the fires around her suddenly subside… Angered, Inzi shouts to the sky after several growls and hisses “OLD MAN, ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? DO YOU WANT MORE BLOOD SPILLED IN YOUR NAME?” Inzi’s flames then begin to grow and turn ever brighter. She smiles and shouts “AWAKEN, MY MASTER!” A huge explosion occurs, with a thundering detonation and a severe heat wave; suffice to say you are knocked off your feet and back to the ground. A big, burly and muscle-bound humanoid materializes from Inzi’s flames; you can see right through him, wearing strange collars and bracelets made from red beads and the fangs of unspecified predators, eyes glowing red and over his head he wears some sort of earthenware firepit filled with flaming embers. Inzi’s fire spirit grabs the Bugbear’s neck, lifting him off the ground. The Ghast surpassed both Inzi’s height and weight but that posed no problem for the strange fiery apparition.

Then, with a maniacal grin, Inzi chants something in Drakainaon; the hisses and growls are way harsher than the refined, soft-spoken and haughty version Smija speaks. Wielding her claymore with one hand, Inzi runs it right through the creature’s gut and subsequently, with the creature’s severed hand, she slashes up to where his heart ought to be… After a shower of gore and a very pained shout from the Ghast, Inzi rips his heart out of the ribcage, holding it overhead in triumph.

Another huge explosion soon follows; the shockwave sends you back and after skidding a few times along the pavement, you collide with a nearby pile of debris. An enormous wall of fire completely engulfs the area round Inzi… The strange spirit she had summoned steps out of the flames. Wearing nothing than a loincloth and with arms crossed, he looks down upon you; although he frowns with a stern expression, you can notice a faint smile on his face. He nods once and completely disappears with a harsh gust of hot wind.

>>220920

After the bursting flames finally subside, the lifeless, charred corpse of the ghoulified Bugbear lies on the ground; his meat completely cooked, skin charred and cracked and his then-tattered armor is completely molten. Inzi lies face-down right in front of him… Completely naked, caked in burnt dry blood and still grasping the claymore on her right hand and the charred heart on the other; Her tail also covers her most private lady parts… All around her are several pools of molten bronze and steel, It appears the heat she extruded was far too great for both her chainmail skirt and breast cups to withstand; even the hairpin Smija gave her had melted. However, the scaly thigh-guards she wears are still intact and in place, as well as her claymore, and… Between her legs and all over both of her muscular inner thighs is a small splash of glistening, lewd liquid.

As you quickly approach Inzi, all of your worries suddenly vanish after you hear her loud snoring. The flames on her tail are also wildly flickering about, so she should be fine… Perhaps the sudden outburst drained all of Inzi’s energy. “Oh goodness it’s like lookin’ at my grandma… B-But with a tail!” Regula suddenly comes running to the scene, exclaiming upon looking at Inzi’s muscular --yet feminine- scar-ridden body, “C-Cornie don’t look at her, it’s shameful!” She then covers Cornelius’ eyes in a comical manner.

Delwen gingerly approaches from behind, placing a hand over your shoulder guard “That was a bit scary… B-But fun nonetheless!” Indeed it was; although a bit strange. After all, there are many things you do not know about Inzi… But it hardly matters right now, the fight is finally over, the Ghast has been dealt with and the rest of the ghouls are probably double-dead… Chuckling afterwards, Delwen adds “She’s so carefree… Just look at her, lying around all naked” With a smug smile, she flies closer to your face “Don’t worry, I won’t tell Smija you saw Inzi’s naked body!~”

What a long day it has been… On the ground lies Inzi, naked and unconscious, letting out loud snores and sucking on her left thumb; still in flames, the late elven workshop can be seen from the distance, although the fire has mostly subsided by now; Regula tightly hugs Cornelius, rejoiced and thankful this predicament is finally over; and Delwen loudly yawns as she pokes Inzi with a stick. All in all, the night is quiet, perhaps too much… You wonder what the next course of action is going to be…

>wot dü

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>Patron God Xiuhtecuhtli

>calls him old man and master

>manifests itself out of her tail

>Inzi's fire daddy might be pimping her flames

>made out of super fire

>wants blood spilled in its name

>apparently has criteria for approval and diapproval

>important to Inzi's goals and motivations

>noticed Otho

>noticed Otho

It feels kind of weird to say this for a world where magic is a thing, but I feel like we just witnessed a paranormal event.

Knowing more about Xiuhtecuhtli might explain why Inzi is the way she is, and possibly why salamanders (or just Inzi's tribe?) are the way they are. Sounds important to know for a number of reasons. He's like Santa Claus except instead of leaving out milk and cookies on the hearth, he only comes down the chimney for fire and violence.

>>220948

Let's not add more fuel to the fire, cover Inzi's shame with oracle's old robe (1 Really old robe [BAG]) I guess it's that one. That way smija won't get upset and we would have the completely legitimate totallynotanexcuse of protecting her integrity. One way or another Smija is probably going to find out we saw Inzi's naked booty, she's a girl and girls always find out about stuff like that plus we can't have Inzi go around wearing nothing, can't we? It's still a long way until we reach the villa and she would probably beat the ever living shit out of us if she finds out we paraded her naked salamander booty around.

>>221185

Good idea. I second this idea. Hopefully, we can find a way to cool down Inzi so the robe doesn't burst into cinders.

>Smija beat up Otho.

I don't think Smija is like that… But she is an Apophis who is deeply in love with and fixated completely on Otho, I don't want to probe how strong her secret yandere tendencies are.

Seriously, I think an anon last thread that suggested cheating on our little grapesnek. I thought to myself, "Oh dear, that would turn this from a 'Create Your Own Adventure' into a 'Create Your Own Disaster'."

>>221214

Or it was a previous thread to that. I think he was calling for some Inzi action.

>>221214

Whoops, sorry. I reread your post and realized you meant Inzi now. Not Smija.

>>221215

The objectively superior only option would be to switch perspectives to inzi while she clashes with and eventually fucks not! solaire.

>>221226

fuck

>>220921

Wondering what your next move is going to be, you notice Regula standing right behind you with a very content smile on her face “Thank you…” she softly sobs “Y-You’re my hero… You, along with Inzi and Delwen, saved us all from bein’ eaten… A-And for this, I shall be forever grateful…” Regula then leans down and circling her long arms behind your back, she proceeds to give you a reasonably cold supernatural hug… But -perhaps due to her inability to maintain a fully tangible form- her body phases right through yours; Regula ultimately loses balance and clumsily falls flat to the ground.

You are momentarily paralyzed by the sheer paranormal cold her body extrudes… Then -after stepping to the side away from her body- you extend a hand to help Regula stand up. As her hand touches yours, it again phases right through; with a very frustrated look on her face, Regula whimpers and sobs yet again…

From the distance, Cornelius comes mockingly laughing and snorting; he takes her hand and swiftly helps Regula stand up. Patting her back a few times, Cornelius says “We’ve got a long way to go my Regula… The first thing we’re doing tomorrow is teaching you how to maintain a level of tangibility… Can’t have you wander around unable to grasp objects, can’t we?” There is a certain look of fear and uncertainty in Regula’s face; it seems she cannot quite accept the fact that has now become a ghost… Then, with a smile, Cornelius holds her hand tightly in reassurance. He then turn to you and says “So… I suppose I should give my thanks as well. That was quite fun I gotta say, haven’t had any kind of crazy exploits in a long time! Aside from our little campaign against a certain demon that is…”

It is good to see all is well; everyone is unharmed and in one piece. You mention to Cornelius the need to obtain something to facilitate Inzi’s transportation, perhaps a big Inzi-sized wheelbarrow or anything of that sort. You wondered if there could be one back at the smoldering ruins of the elven workshop or anywhere nearby. Without a word, Cornelius immediately takes off -taking Regula along- in search for the item you just asked for.

You then turn your attention to Delwen “Um… Otho, I think there’s a tiny wee problem with Inzi…” She says. The end of the stick she used to poke Inzi with has now caught fire… “I think she’s still too hot… Look” Delwen takes a small bottle of an unspecified clear liquid out of her pouch bag, subsequently pouring it all over Inzi’s back; the liquid sizzles and promptly begins to evaporate as Inzi placidly sleeps, sucking her thumb whilst softly chuckling.

>>221603

Then, unexpectedly, Inzi turns over, lying on her back. Her breasts -with erect brown nipples- freely swaying and her legs completely spread revealing her glistening genitalia along with a small patch of dark auburn-colored pubes; all while she still thoroughly sucks on her thumb.

You quickly put a hand over your eyes and swiftly turn around “Goddessdammit, right when I was about to cover her up with Oracle’s old robe!” You blurt in frustration. Delwen devilishly chuckles as she approaches with a very smug expression, you add “Don’t you dare telling Smija about this; I was supposed to not see a thing!”

Delwen says with utmost malevolence “Do you actually fear Smija? Oh my!~ How sad she is going to be upon hearing her beloved Sweetie fears her mighty love~”

“N-No! I-It’s just that she’s a bit uh… Clingy and might get the wrong idea… How am I supposed to explain what just happened today?!”

Delwen places both hands over your shoulders, warmly smiling “By being completely honest with her, you dummy! I didn’t like it when hubby lied or told half-truths and I can bet Smija wouldn’t like so either!”

And so, moments later, both Regula and Cornelius finally arrive back to the scene. Regula gasps in surprise upon seeing Inzi’s muscular body lying face-up. Yet again she covers Cornelius’ eyes, exclaiming “Goodness, she now looks like mama!…”

“We couldn’t find a thing!” Cornelius says whilst his eyes are still covered by Regula “No wheelbarrows, carts or carriages; nothing. The place is completely trashed and the flames have consumed it all… The few buildings nearby didn’t yield anything either. Also, I wouldn’t advise to do a more thorough search, the less time we spend out here, the better…” After a short pause, he adds “Although it would be a shame if all those dead ghouls were left to waste; Witches and the likes would pay a hefty price for their blood and oily glands, even you yourself could find a good use for those things!” And after scratching his chin for a bit, he continues “So, what are we going to do now?”

This poses yet another problem. Inzi cannot be lifted without harming yourself due to her still very high body temperature. Also Inzi is fairly tall and strongly built after all… She is bit heavier than you are; you have carried her before, but it was done with the help of Smija’s snake strong lower half. This -coupled with the fact that there are no wheelbarrows or carts to facilitate her transportation- poses a very serious issue; spending the night out here would not be advisable either…

>wat do

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

we could use our frost aura to cool her body temperature and maybe wake her up, we just need to be careful when we do this to not harm her

we should also get out of here, could be more undead around

>>221658

>On a scale from 1 to Inzi, how attractive is Regula again?

>The ball of light finally descends and takes the form of a young bespectacled woman, of a bluish translucent color, sitting behind the desk. She quickly takes notice of you and adjusts her round eyeglasses, which makes them glint. “Oh! Howdy m’lord! Ain’t expectin’ ya ‘till this afternoon!” Then, quite abruptly, the woman stands up and bangs her head against something that appears to be invisible. “Owie, owie!” Regula yelps as she walks closer to your party. Clearing her throat and adjusting the glasses, she says “S-Sorry! Greetings Senator Volodislaus! We were not expecting you until this afternoon.” As the ghostly lady walked closer, her towering height became evident. Of fairly lean, svelte physique, the toga she wears loosely hugs her body. Her face is somewhat narrow and her hair is swept-back, neatly braided behind the head. “This must be your lovely wife and your beautiful daughter!” she adds, leaning down and extending a hand towards Delwen, patting her head. Both Inzi and you sidestepped… You pointed the blunderbuss at her, but she didn’t seem to mind.

http://archive.is/onGaO#selection-16941.0-16941.1079

>Cornelius mockingly chortles when you mention Maja, who is in need of a book explaining how human relationships worked, since you considered her to be somewhat ‘different’ and with a strange conception on how the world worked. Cornelius guides you over to a corner of the first floor, where the public stacks are located, and hands over a book titled ‘A guide to Humans: Second Revised Edition’, a tome explaining in astounding detail how the inner workings of several types of humans worked based on their societal and ethnic background… As seen through the eyes of a very inquisitive, curious and well-travelled Owl Harpy. “This is the perfect book for her” Cornelius boasts “It was very coveted back in the day, we had to keep several copies because each day many demihumans came looking for it… A very popular book indeed.” Cornelius longingly stares at the floor while chuckling “Poor Regula had to fight with all kinds of people who didn’t quite grasp the concept of how a library worked… People ripping pages off and trying to ‘buy’ the book. Can you believe she once beat up a Manticore who called her a ‘walking lamp post’? That unfortunate cat-lady had to be taken away to a hospital, unconscious and badly battered. I think it’s the Amazon blood she has… Had, she had.”

http://archive.is/onGaO#selection-36587.0-36587.1281

From the previous thread. She's not too buff, but not too skinny either. Let your imagination run wild.

>>221675

>Let your imagination run wild.

>>221658

Too late.

>>221675

Just wanted to say that I've just had a marathon of your other threads and I absolutely love this story.

>>222592

Thanks Anon, I try my best. Also, welcome.

>>222781

IT'S TOO LATE NOW

WE'RE ALL HERE, YOU GOTTA UPDATE

>>222780

WHERE'S THE UPDATE OP?

WHERE IS IT?

Update's possibly gonna be tomorrow or this Friday. Sorry guyse.

>>221607

The first thing coming into your mind is to vocally wake her up: “Inzi, wake up. We need to leave, now.” You say with a somewhat low tone as not to draw much attention in case there are more ghouls around… Upon getting no response, you get reasonably closer --whilst avoiding ‘accidentally’ gazing upon her well-toned body- and this time, exclaiming in a reasonably higher voice, you say “There’s a huge Ghast that needs killing and I can’t do it alone! We need your help Inzi, wake up!” Still nothing… “OH SHIT THE FIRES WE SET UP ARE NOW CONSUMING A BIG PART OF THE RUINS! YOU GOTTA SEE THIS, IT’S AWESOME!” And nothing… “WOOOW LOOK AT THAT EXPLOSION!” Delwen does the sound effect of a distant explosion, but Inzi still remains out cold; she rolls to the side, placidly getting into fetal position while sucking on her thumb.

“She looks so cute; she’s like a big baby!” Delwen chuckles as Inzi murmurs something unintelligible.

With the huge Salamander still deeply asleep, you decide to move into more drastic methods. With a metal rod that was laying atop a pile of rubble, you cool it down with the frost aura spell and thus begin to poke on Inzi’s shoulder… Upon getting no response, you begin to poke her cheek “Wake up dammit, we gotta go…” Inzi --grumbling in annoyance- forcefully slaps the metal rod away, her strength made it fly off your hands.

Frustrated, you decide to momentarily walk away in order to clear your mind… Cornelius approaches, suggesting it would probably be a good choice to harvest some of the ghouls’ blood and glands while you think of a way to wake up Inzi. Afterwards, he says “I don’t want to be boastful, but I do know how to properly exsanguinate, skin and butcher game; I wouldn’t be a proper Vlaechi if I couldn’t do so… After all, I was the one who always had the gruesome task of butchering the animals both my father and brother caught; my mother wouldn’t even want to do so! Leave it all to me; I only need a knife and a few air-tight containers for the blood and oily glands… Boy it feels like ages since the last time I butchered anything…”After rummaging through your bag for a moment, Cornelius was unable to find any suitable containers… Delwen gingerly approaches, suggesting she could provide a few small mason jars she has been hoarding inside the seemingly bottomless bag. Upon searching for a moment, Delwen takes out five big glass jars with cork stoppers, swiftly handing them over to Cornelius, who adds “Never before have I butchered a ghoul, but I have read about it… This is gonna be fun! Especially because they used to be living people… I had always wondered how it would feel to cut a person open and see the entrails just like in anatomy tomes…” And right after giving him your hunting knife, he says whilst brandishing it “Pray I don’t break the oily glands! According to this book I read years ago, the stench from the oil is nigh unbearable when it comes in contact with the air!” Cornelius then takes off alongside Regula shortly thereafter.

>>224096

Back again you are reminded about the conundrum of Inzi’s awakening… Pouring nearly-frozen water over her body --which began boiling upon coming in contact with her skin-; Throwing several flashbangs at her –Neither the sound or the harsh light could wake her up-; Hovering floating lights closely to her face –Again, none worked-; Asking Delwen to make some tactile or audial illusions. Several times Delwen tried to cast illusory spells, but they ultimately backfired with showers of glitters and strange disembodied sounds echoing all over the place, in frustration, Delwen apologized for her inability to cast complex illusions, it appears the three days of sleep deprivation have taken a toll on her frail body; And finally, using the smelling salts from your first-aid kit: Inzi grunted and sneezed a few times and after placing the small bottle closer to her still-considerably hot body, the salts seemingly disappear into thin air, leaving behind a thin yellowy cloud which smelled like urine and sweat mixed together… Baffled by what just had happened, you suddenly notice a label on the reverse of the bottle that reads ‘Do not expose Hammoniacus Sal to severe heat, could cause complete degradation of the product’… If only you had read that before.

“Ugh…” You say in frustration, blurting out soon after “Should I risk melting my face to wake her up with a kiss like in children’s stories?”

Delwen cutely giggles, devilishly responding “Ohhh I’m so telling Smija about all this!~”

“Shut up Delwen, this is serious!” to which she whimpers like a scolded child… Indeed this is a serious situation, and serious situations demand serious measures. You have got the right tools for it: Lightningrod!

With the very same metal rod from moments ago you prepare a shock of the lightningrod spell; hovering the stick near her face, crackling sparks fly about and are ultimately proved futile as Inzi keeps placidly sleeping… “Well, seems like it has come to this…” You cast the spell, but this time poking Inzi with the metal rod, “Wake the fuck up!” You exclaim whilst forcibly poking on her shoulder, sparks fly off the rod and Inzi’s body violently shakes and twitches; extending her arms and arching her back, she lets out a both pained and angry saurian roar, only to limply fall back to the ground shortly afterwards. Inzi is now even more unconscious; she stopped sucking on her thumb and foam is now coming out of her mouth.

“Dammit…” You sigh in defeat, placing both palms over your face “Now she’s even worse than before! Was I too rough?”

“Of course you were! Is this the way you treat Smija?” Frowning, Delwen angrily complains.

“W-Well I thought she’d wake up to that! I had no other choice! Come on, it’s Inzi! She said she could take a beating and I can bet she wouldn’t mind it one bit!”

“But she’s still a girl, Otho” With arms crossed, Delwen adds “No matter how tough she might seem, Inzi is a very delicate person…” She then condescendingly says “Why have you not tried a more gentle approach? You know, you kind of had the right idea after suggesting waking her up with a kiss…” After lightly giggling, Delwen continues “But all your kisses belong to Smija, she has told me so… … Umm… So… P-Perhaps could like… Pat her head a few times and whisper right into her frilly ear… Or something the likes of that… It could work!” Then, with a playful smile, she finishes with a wink “I know I’d wake up if a guy with a deep voice whispered right into my ear~…”

Delwen could be right after all. Sitting on the floor somewhat close to Inzi, yet again you cast the frost aura in order to cool her body down a bit; you still cannot quite approach her body without being put off by the heat. After well over ten minutes of waiting, Inzi finally reacts: Rolling away from you, she cuddles like a baby and starts to suck her thumb once more. The heat she extruded has reasonably subsided thanks to the frost aura, so you cancel the spell right away; after all, you intend to be gentle and prolonged exposure to the frost aura could cause some harm to her reptilian body.

>>224097

Inzi’s body is still fairly warm, but not as much to burn or melt your face… Leaning over her frilly reptilian ear, you whisper softly whilst gently patting her head “Hey Inzi… It’s time to wake up. I uh… I’m sorry for being a bit rough back then… But I had exhausted all my options… After all, we really need to go.”

“Mmmhhh” Inzi lightly moans, slowly opening her eyes in the process “Hey dude…” With a pained frown, she adds “Ughh, I hurt all over… *Yawn* it feels like someone beat the shit outta me…”

You respond with a chuckle “Y-Yeah, sorry about that…”

“’Bout what? *Yawn* I think I had… Too much fun… For one night…” She responds with a groggy chuckle, closing her eyes shortly afterwards.

“Oh come on! don’t fall asleep again… We really gotta go, there could be more undead around!”

“But I’m so tired, I just wanna sleep… Could ya fetch me a blanket? It’s kinda windy tonight… *Yawn* G’night Shorty…” Inzi adds with a rather gentle tone and a smile, immediately falling asleep back again; curled and thoroughly sucking on her thumb.

“See? It wasn’t so hard…” Delwen comments shortly after you stand up. With her energy completely drained, it appears that Inzi will not be waking up anytime soon…

You sigh, somewhat defeated “Well, I suppose she’s now cold enough to wear Oracle’s robe…” With a bit of careful telekinesis --a minimal amount of force applied- you manage to lift Inzi’s body softly enough as of not to break or bruise anything. Then, with much finesse, you swiftly slide her into the robe… It tightly fits due to her big frame and the robe is long enough to reach her lower thighs, nonetheless her lady parts have been successfully covered…

Perhaps due to the fact that you have not gotten any sleep in several days, this short session of telekinesis has put a strain on both your body and mana reserves; you are near exhaustion to say the least… And with reason: You had your soul trapped and fought both a demon and a whole pack of ghouls in a span of nearly three days or so. Right now, using telekinesis in order to transport Inzi is out of the question. After all, controlling the spell is hard enough when you are at full energy; so you inquire about the possibility of Delwen shrinking her down to a more manageable size…

>>224098

“I-I’m sorry, but I don’t think I could do it right now…” Delwen says after loudly yawning; she too is very tired, “I’m a bit strained, Otho… S-Sorry… Though I could use what is left of my Pixie Dust… That should be enough to make her float; since Inzi seems so placidly asleep, I think she would float just fine… M-Maybe you could even carry her over your back as well… I can store your stuff inside my bag, don’t worry…”

Without further ado Delwen sprinkles a handful of glowing powder all over Inzi’s body, causing her to immediately float a small distance off the ground “I’m sorry, but right now this is the best I can do…” Delwen gingerly apologizes like a scolded puppy. With a headpat, you reassure her help is very much appreciated; Delwen smiles and blushes a bit, adding “W-Would you mind if I rested on the brim of your helmet? *Yawn* I don’t think I could keep my flight for much longer…”

Indeed she can… After storing your possessions inside Delwen’s bag, she shrinks herself down to subsequently sit over the brim of your helmet. With your back now free, you turn Inzi belly-down and circle her big meaty arms around your neck; with one hand, she tightly holds onto your chest and rests head over your right shoulder… Then, shortly afterwards, Inzi yet again begins to suck on her thumb, placidly growling into your ear and strongly gripping your chest. It appears that Delwen’s dust now allows her to float a small distance off the ground, but nothing further than that; Inzi’s feet and knees are freely dragging along mere centimeters away from the pavement. Though very heavy, her body is now completely manageable, allowing you to continue further… Now it is time to head back for some well-deserved rest; something urgently needed at this very moment.

checkem

>>224099

Soon enough you reach Regula and Cornelius, as well as a very gruesome scene right in front of the still-burning elven workshop… Intestines strewn across the streets of cobblestone, along with other unspecified organs and random bodyparts. Regula looks sickly, but Cornelius seems to be having lots of fun “Oh hey!” Cornelius exclaims, making an incision in the chest of a double-dead ghoul “Sorry about the mess, but I decided to check what these guys had inside… Can you believe ghouls have fully-functioning stomachs? A few of them were even full of half-digested bones and hair! This is impressive considering they are undead creatures! The best part is that I can’t get my robe dirty because I’m a ghost!” Regula quickly steps to the side and throws up a bunch of ectoplasm.

“Well, seems like fun’s over! I’ve gathered about sixteen oily glands from all the non-charred ghouls lying around. They’re somewhat fragile, be careful!” Cornelius shows you a jar full of drop-shaped organs; they look like membranes filled with a transparent brownish liquid. “And of course, three jars all filled with blood. I used an old Ur-Shemath exsanguination method employed for ritual slaughtering… The blood will coagulate shortly, but that’s alright. People actually buy it either dried or fully coagulated; it has a long shelf-life as well, so worry not about spoilage!” and finally, he shows a jar crammed with… Hearts? “I saved the biggest jar for the most special organ. This one is actually for your Salamander friend; it’s full of hearts, about ten! Lizards often employ sacrifices to appease their many gods and goddesses, and they do so by ripping the still-beating hearts off their victims; just like Inzi had done moments ago. I suppose she could find a good use for these things, maybe with cremation rituals… Perhaps these hearts are useless for her, or perhaps they are not; who knows? Maybe these will even make her fire-god friend grant her his boon or something! Their culture is full of heroes and demi-gods after all…”

Then, without much else to say, Delwen stored the jars inside her bag. Cornelius cleaned your knife with a bit of alcohol and a rag, promptly handing it back to you. He then turns around and sighs, witnessing the mess he had done… After throwing the last ghoul into the burning debris, your party finally takes off from the then-gruesome scene, thoroughly cleaned by an enthusiastic Cornelius and a sickly Regula, who could not hold it any longer and yet again she had to throw up.

checkem again

>>224103

I need more ambient pics, I know the setting's at night, but those are the only ones I had at the moment.

>>224103

Ask Cornelius to spook em

>>224306

>“Dammit…” You sigh in defeat, placing both palms over your face “Now she’s even worse than before! Was I too rough?”

>“Of course you were! Is this the way you treat Smija?” Frowning, Delwen angrily complains.

B-but she told me she liked it!

>>224306

I'm a posting champion today… I can't believe I even forgot the intro!

~~Always look on the bright side of undeath!

~~Right after you draw your terminal breath!

~~It's always getting better.

~~Look, I ain't got ghoul gruel on me knickers!

>>224306

Forgot to sage too… because after I tried to post, it got stuck and then I forgot to re-click 'do not bump' when I posted again at the top.

>>218235 (OP)

bump

>>225301

kill you're self

>>225305

shut up faggot. i bet you dont even have anti 404 powers, nerd.

>>224311 (Czech'd)

Fuk u that song has been stuck in my head since yesterday.

>>225305

Don't worry m8, I was gonna update today I think. probably positive.

>>225324

Sorry for the delay guys, been a bit too busy. The update should really be ready by tomorrow.

>>224103

After taking a deep breath, you murmur in annoyance “I just want some rest dammit…” These outrageously dumb delays seem to have become the order of the day. By now, the fight above appears to have worsened: You hear pained screams, bones rattling around and threatening hisses.

Taking out Oracle’s hand, you begin to inform her about your success in dealing with the ghouls, but another obstacle yet remains: The city’s gates, guarded by four stooges who will not stop fighting over petty matters. You asked her to send someone in order to open the gates for you and pass the guard checkpoint. Again Oracle asks for a surface to write on, and after Delwen quickly takes out your notepad and a charcoal, she begins to write: “WAS IT THEE?! ” Oracle writes in all-capital.

Feigning both ignorance and innocence, you respond “Maybe, but I don’t know what you’re talking about… Probably not… Nope!”

”Goodness! Dost thou know how much that detonation hath scared Smija, mineself and everyone else in the city!? T’was thee, was it not? Ohhh I know it was. Thou cannot lie to me… But worry not, thou art not in trouble; at least not with me or the inhabitants of this city. The general consensus officially blames an old boiler explosion in the outer ruins, or so Trevonius and Alcedinus had told me. It appears nobody wants to search upon whom or what is to blame, because apparently there is (Or rather was, supposing thou probably killed them all, which I assume is true… I know thee well!) a dangerous -as well as feared- pack of ghouls roaming the place during nighttime. I suppose congratulations art in order, but since even from here I could the see the lights and rising fires, methinks thou should keep this whole affair in the darkness (hehe); the ruins outside are a touchy subject and despite their state, people consider them to be ‘disused but still-owned property’… So, congratulations on becoming the nameless hero of Napæca! By the way, there is a bounty for each ghoul taken down, but if the authorities somehow find about thine arsonistic ways, they will most likely lock thee in jail…”

For a moment, Oracle’s hand goes limp; writing shortly afterwards ”Trevonius here says the nighttime guard has a troublesome officer who takes her job WAY too seriously, tending to exaggerate over usually petty matters; Alcedinus is now heading out to get thee, thou art now a band of inconspicuous hirelings employed by the Gallus family seeking to bring their long-lost sister back home! Remember to always comply with whatever the guards ask of thee and please inform thine friends, ‘tis very important thou play along. Right as we ‘speak’, the city watch hath implemented a curfew order thanks to a certain explosion that is completely unrelated to thee or thine team; it also appears the nighttime watch -unlike the daytime one- is under very strict management: this is the reason Trevonius hath told thee to enter the city during daytime, for he is friends with the guards who do the day shift. Anyway, once Alcedinus arrives, follow him through and always agree to whatever he tells to the watch. Stay safe Othonios, and please do not cause any further commotions; people art very fearful about another cataclysm. PD: Do not tell Regula that Alcedinus will be the one to pick thee up; according to him, she is very afraid of the undead and seeing him in his current state could come with severe consequences.”

>>227667

After you explained what comes next, Regula worriedly exclaims “I sure hope my li’l brothers and the rest of my family are fine… This whole place seems like a wreck and it feels like it was just yesterday since the last time I set foot in front of these gates… Doesn’t it feel that way for you as well, Cornie?” Regula tightly holds onto Cornelius’ hand, after you -yet again- emphasized about the state of the Gallus household, Regula adds with an awkward smile trying to cover her sadness “Well, if my brothers are still ‘round I guess there’s still hope for the rest of my folk to be alive, don’tcha think?” Certainly, although neither you nor the Gallus brothers have an idea on the whereabouts of the rest of their family, at least Regula still has a few family members left.

Once done and after making sure all of your important items are inside Delwen’s bag (Namely the stuff you nabbed from the library) you begin to look for something that could be used to signal the watch: There ought to be flags or bells one could employ from the outside, as those were commonly used back in your walled hometown of Drywater. After spotting a small bell hanging right underneath the window; you proceed to ring the bell using a cord attached to it, but not before saying “Sorry Delwen, Inzi… But I gotta do this.”

As expected the bell rings loudly and as the guards keep fighting, your call is largely ignored. Rolling your eyes once, you lay Inzi on the ground and proceed to ring the bell even harder… But your call remains ignored, the fight above appears to be getting nastier, as you are now hearing the raspy voice plead for mercy. Annoyed, you take a deep breath and start to ring the bell with all of your raging might “Dammit!” you yell whilst desperately pulling on the bell’s cord. Such was your might that the thin rope finally gives in; with one strong pull, your rip the bell off the wall as well as breaking the cord in the process. As the bell falls right besides Inzi, you shout at the top of your lungs with both anger and indignation “GODDESSFUCKINGDAMMIT!” then proceeding to grab the fallen bell and with a very strong wave of telekinesis, you throw it right into the window where the ruckus is coming from; it collides with the magical barrier, afterwards falling right in front of you. Badly deformed from the impact, this poor brazen bell will not be seeing any action for the rest of its days… The guards inside keep fighting, which is indignant to say the least.

“Remember Sonny, turn around, closer your eyes, take a deep breath and count to ten… Tackle your problems head-on and don’t give in to anger!” You grandfathers’ wise words resonate within your mind; as his sage advice had never failed, you do right as he used to say… Thus, after calming down a bit, you proceed to yell once more “Open the door! We’ve been hired by the Gallus family and need to enter the city!” Upon getting no response --the guards are still on their petty squabble- you approach the gates, subsequently banging on them. The heavy metallic frame sounds almost like a bell, with deep reverberations echoing all around; but they are ultimately proved futile as the stooges keep fighting.

>>227668

Again it is time for desperate measures, approaching Cornelius, you inquire about the possibility of using more drastic means: Namely spooking the guards without putting himself in danger; he is a ghost after all, and spooking should come as a natural talent for undead folk.

“Well, yes. I suppose I could float up to the window and put on my meanest face…” Cornelius says, thoughtfully scratching his chin “I remember reading some passages from that one book I nabbed before leaving the library -‘Handbook for the recently deceased’- it said when focusing enough, a ghost can morph his face and body into gruesome shapes… It’s worth a try! Ectoplasmic bodies are highly malleable, not as much a say… A slime’s membranous body, but it should still allow me to do some crazy stuff after channeling enough mana. After all, the mana nodes from a ghost’s subtle body remain intact as they are tied to the pneuma and psyche, rather than the mundane, decomposed and possibly lost soma! It’s basic magic theory… I must take these facts into account in order to become a respectable ghost; it will be just like learning magic once again!” Cornelius suddenly stops, staring at nothing in deep concentration. After several minutes of murmuring what you thought were excerpts from magical tomes and random complex words, he suddenly comes back to himself, exclaiming: “Leave it all to me, Othonios! I understand what needs to be done… I can see it clearly. I must focus mana right into my apex and oculus pools! If I do this, then I could… … which will cause the… … and then one would be able to… … as well as the… … enabling my intangible pneuma to… … THAUMATURGIC ENERGIES… … without binding my psyche into an object or living being… … by doing so the mana extruded will then… … .. and so… thus …” Cornelius’ theory keeps dragging on, slowly deliberating about the consequences a clogged spiritual something-whatever could bring as well as the nature of magic according to several philosophers from the ancient world. When he is finally done, he says with utmost determination “Let’s do this! I know a way of bypassing the barrier utilizing my ghostly body!” He promptly takes off, slowly floating upwards towards the window.

“D-Don’t get yourself in trouble, Cornie!” Regula exclaims, hopelessly fawning “He’s so smart, ain’t he? So bold as well…”

>>227669

Upon approaching the window, Cornelius suddenly turns completely transparent; he then begins to rub his face in a very strange manner. From the distance, you could tell several appendages with the form of tendrils, insect legs and eyestalks coming out of his face; Cornelius tries his best to hide these from sight, turning his face away from both Regula and you. Afterwards, his transparent body starts to glow with a bluish hue; Cornelius then floats right toward the window and after extending his hand into the shining magical barrier, which undulates and splashes just like a pond being disturbed by a falling pebble, he finally manages to break through.

The brawl soon turns into fearful screaming: “AHHHHHH!” both feminine voices yell in unison. Suddenly, you see a long, green-scaled tail hopelessly flailing about “GET AWAY, GET AWAY, GET AWAY! EEEK!” she yells in fear.

“Open the gates at once or be subject to the eldritch horrors from beyond this plane! There are mortals seeking entry into this city while you fools squabble over petty matters!” A severely distorted and deep voice exclaims; sounds like Cornelius is having fun.

And soon enough the rusty gates finally begin to open with the sharp sound of bending metal. Once opened, you see Cornelius smugly smirking; behind him are the four foolish guards: all clad in chainmail, drop-shaped helmets as well as wielding crossbows which are being aimed right at your party, although with very shaky hands… The first one is a slender, green-scaled Lamia. Then a somewhat pale woman wearing big tinted eyewear. Beside her is a hunchbacked goblin nervously shaking and finally, the rightmost guard is a shambling skeleton with several missing teeth and bones, as well as a pegleg… They all have fearful expressions on their faces, even officer bones.

“Wh-What i-is the mea---” The pale woman steps to the front, arranging her tinted, reflective eyewear back in place whilst clearing her throat “WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?! Explain yourselves at once!” she exclaims with an authoritative tone.

Before you could even say a word, Cornelius phases right through the Lamia guard, causing her to shiver profusely. He then proceeds to walk towards you party, saying “We are hirelings under the banner of the Gallus family; our employers are in dire need for the completion of our task, but seeing as you people were very busy with the nightly rounds to even answer a call from outside the walls, I decided to let you know of our presence in a more…” Upon finally reaching your party, Cornelius turns around and finishes “Direct and personal manner, so to speak; forgive my intrusion.”

“OUTRAGEOUS!” The pale woman yells, showing pearly white teeth and sharp fangs “Trespassing into the city is a severe crime punished by heavy fines and jail time, YOU PEOPLE BETTER HAVE A GOOD REASON TO---” She exclaims, but is promptly interrupted by Cornelius.

“A good reason to be slacking on the job? Or perhaps a good reason to destroy watch property such as all those chairs, smashed desks and tables? Could we talk to your superiors about this? Maybe even complain about ignoring our desperate calls… How irresponsible of you!” Cornelius smugly grins “Our reason to be here is for the safekeeping of Lady Gallus…” Regula steps to the front, shyly waving her hand. Cornelius then continues: “My associates and I are exhausted and we can assure you we pose no harm… Besides, you as members of the urban cohorts are obliged by law to grant refuge to any travelers, as long as they declare themselves innocent and pose no apparent threat. It says so Napaecan law! Codex three, clause nine: Whomsoever seeks refuge from--- ”

The vampiric officer interrupts Cornelius, rolling her red eyes in annoyance whilst reciting “Whomsoever seeks refuge from the dangerous Septentrian wilderness shall be granted a special visitant permit only and only if they pose no threat to the integrity and sanctity of our city. Addendum: Smugglers are excluded from any protective laws and shall be reprimanded on sight… Yes, I know all four codices from top to bottom”, she then continues with a smirk “That will not spare you from the bureaucratic tartarus the census and excise office will put you through… Luckily, tonight I am also on census duty!~” She adds smugly “Pray your meet the qualifications for passage… It would be a shame if we had to turn you back and be vetoed from entering the city during daytime as well…”

>>227670

Your party is then guided -by both the pale lady and her lamia companion- into a building next to the watchtower; expectedly, a small sign above the door reads ‘CENSVS’, and as with everything in Napaeca, this place has seen better days: cobwebs on every corner, cracked walls and mold stains decorate the interiors. The vampiric lady suddenly stops, turns around, standing with feet close together and puffed chest, exclaiming “Officer Julia Dragulesca! Third urban cohort! Nightshift watchwoman and temporary census and excise agent! Tonight I will be guiding you through the painstaking process for obtaining a visitant permit.” She says so with a stern almost military-like tone. It seemed odd to you that one does not require a special permit in order to access the city during the day; perhaps it is true the night shift has a more strict bureaucracy… Trevonius failed to inform you about this.

Right after laying Inzi on a nearby bench, you are called to a back room for a customary interrogation… Officer Julia prompts you to leave all weapons and dangerous objects on a nearby table whilst proceeding to do a very invasive frisking, passing her hands all over your body in search for hidden weapons and other illegal substances, “Name, occupation and affiliation.” She says with an authoritative tone after being done patting your inner thighs… Strangely enough, her frisking was of a completely professional nature.

“Othonios Constantinos, Hireling, mercenary and odd-jobber, Gallus family.” You immediately respond; the officer then begins to frantically write on a ledger. You are then prompted to take a seat, afterwards to be bombarded by incessantly annoying questions such as ‘place of origin’, ‘motive of your visit’, ‘magical abilities’ and to declare any other dangerous objects in your possession. Naturally, you complied just as how Oracle had told you.

When she is finally done, Officer Julia guides you back to the previous room and proceeds to interrogate Cornelius… Thankfully the rest of the interviews did not last too long, as Inzi --for obvious reasons, she is still out cold- could not do hers and Delwen was too sleepy to even answer her name correctly. Out of the blue, one of the guards inquires about the explosion which took place in the ruins; you denied any knowledge and involvement, stating your party was just being guided by a band of friendly ghouls who had shown you the way into the city, as you had been travelling all the way from the ferric gates and got lost in the darkness of the night.

And so, your party is then guided back outside. All four officers stand in front of you… Julia grins, saying “Congratulations, you have all passed the qualifications and shall be granted a visitant permit… Except for you, Mr. Constantinos. I’m afraid you are not qualified to enter the city…” Outraged, you asked for the reason and as Julia hands over some papers to Cornelius, she sternly responds “You have been deemed a dangerous individual, possessing excessive amounts of firepower as well as the ability to cast dangerous magic. As I had previously said: You cannot pass. Thanks to my extensive training, I was able to determine the threat you pose and deem you as a threat to both our citizens and our peaceful city in general… And if I were to bet on it, I’d say you probably caused the explosion which took place almost an hour ago! But as I possess no solid proof on this matter, I have no other option but to label you as a ‘possibly dangerous individual’.”

How scandalous! You are not as dangerous as she paints you to be… Immediately, both Regula and Cornelius begin argue with Julia, vouching for you and assuring the reason of having a small arsenal in your possession is merely for self-defense, something very much needed in this dangerous world.

As the discussion keeps dragging on, you see a familiar figure approaching from the distance: Two enormous boars pulling an equally big wagon driven by a lanky, masked figure clad in robes… Alcedinus has finally arrived.

His threatening presence prompts everyone to stay silent as he slowly walks towards the officers… And once he finally stops, he greets with his somewhat high-pitched voice “I’m here to pick up these fine harmless folk to the Gallus villa! Thank you very much for receiving them!” And as soon as he finishes, Julia explains the whole situation. A very heated discussion ensues once more… This time it consists of Alcedinus giving excuses and trying to bribe officer bones with a fine supply of calcium paste; sadly they just keep him around for his nice personality, thus he has no influence over his coworkers.

“I just wanna go home…” You groggily murmur in exasperation… It has been a long night after all and this discussion appears to be going nowhere… These outrageously dumb delays have truly become the order of the day.

>>227671

Suddenly, the heavy covers on the back of the wagon begin to rustle… Smija comes out of them shortly afterwards; nobody has noticed her presence yet as the guards and Alcedinus are facing their backs towards her. From the distance, she cutely waves at you and after a big warm smile; she throws a kiss at you… As the flying kiss collides with your cheek, you are able to feel her lovely warmth which causes you to smile back. Then, your lovely grape snake cutely signals you to stay quiet by placing an index finger over her mouth. After carefully dusting off her tight-fitting dress, the same one that was stolen by the Tetra-arms way back when the two of you had just met, she carefully arranges the bejeweled hood-ornament-thing over her back and finally takes a deep breath, putting on a very serious face… Smija puffs her chest, which causes her bosom to appear even bigger, and after raising her height quite a bit, she proceeds to silently slither towards the arguing bunch.

“What is the meaning of this delay?” Smija says with a deep, cold and authoritative tone whilst looking down upon the guards; there is a certain aura of royalty surrounding her, causing Smija to appear intimidating as well as haughty and regal, at times like this she really does look like an Apophis princess.

“Smija?! What’cha doin’ here? You’re suppo---” Alcedinus suddenly exclaims before being interrupted.

“MISTRESS Smija for you” She crosses her arms under her bust, adding with a calm yet threatening tone “Answer me at once for I will not repeat myself.”

“I-I uh… I-I’m sorry ‘Mistress’ Smija, but these guys don’t wanna let ‘em thru… Actually they don’t wanna let Othonios thru… The rest of ‘em are clear to pass, but they say Otho here is too dangerous!” Alcedinus smugly answers.

“Is that so?” Smija then turns her attention towards the guards; the Lamia watchwoman appears to be a bit frightened to say the least. After a threatening glare and some menacing words in Drakainaon, Smija orders “These people are my subjects and you WILL let them pass, ESPECIALLY Mr. Othonios Constantinos, who I hold in very high regard and have much respect for; in any case, their lateness will be severely punished according to Apophis law.”

>>227672

Outraged, Julia takes one step closer to Smija; after adjusting her tinted eyewear, she puffs her chest and places both hands over her hips, angrily exclaiming “And just who IN TARTARUS DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, CITIZEN?! ORDERING US MEMBERS OF THE URBAN COHORT TO---”

The Lamia officer suddenly coils her tail around Julia’s torso, abruptly yanking her away. After covering Julia’s mouth with her hand, she exclaims with a very audible whisper “Julia shut up! You don’t wanna test her patience!” Afterwards, the Lamia turns her attention to Smija, avoiding eye contact “W-W-We’re deeply sorry Mistress… B-But we don’t mean to cause any trouble… I-It’s just a collection of petty regulations my colleagues and I are exercising in order to--- AAHHHH!” The Lamia officer is suddenly interrupted by the Dhampir, who had sunk her fangs into her hand.

“PETTY REGULATIONS?! PETTY?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF THE MAGNITUDE OF OUR RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS THIS CITY AND ITS INHABITANTS?! ALLOWING THIS POSSIBLE THREAT TO PRANCE RIGHT INTO OUR CITY?! THIS MAN COULD EVEN START A MASSIVE SHOOTING OR EVEN THREATEN THE INTEGRITY OF OUR FRAIL NOBILITY! HE COULD EVEN CAUSE A SECOND CATACLYSM! HOW DO YOU THINK WE---HGHNGHGH!!” Julia angrily responds before being tightly constricted by her coworker.

“Glycondammit Julia, hush it! Don’t you see there’s a fucking Apophis right in front of us?! And not just anyone, look at her cowl! It’s all ornate! That means she’s someone important! P-Plus, you don’t ever insult someone an Apophis holds in high regard! This man could very well be her fucktoy or something! Are you not aware about the things she could d-do to us if we don’t comply, let alone for insulting someone she’s fond of?! She could do th-things th-that… uh-oh…” Upon realizing her mistake, her face suddenly turns pale. Scared, she looks at her male coworkers, blurting “I… was… thinking loudly, wasn’t I?…” They silently nod in response, equally scared.

Smija threateningly looms before them, casting a shadow which obscures her whole face “Othonios Constantinos is not a man to be feared… Quite the contrary, you should be grateful to have his presence in your midst… And for your information, he is neither my slave nor my personal plaything.” Adding afterwards “I order you let my subjects through at once; no word of this event will be said to your superiors.” She orders before slithering away back into the wagon.

Upon hearing these final words, the goblin guard rushes inside the watchtower, bringing a small stack of papers with him and subsequently handing them over to the skeletal guard “’ERE IT SEZ NOBODY CAME THRU DA GATES TONITE. GONNA CHECK ON DAT FIRE, S-SEE YA LATA!” Fearful of the mean purple snake-lady and armed only with a crossbow and a short spear, the goblin flees the scene only to finally disappear into the ruins, perhaps to do his actual job.

“Vasili thinks he of soiled the trousers…” The skeletal guard nervously rattles as he sits on a nearby table, filling a stack of forms.

“TOMORROW I WILL BE REQUESTING A TRANSFER AWAY FROM YOU INCOMPETENT BUFFOONS! PREPOSTEROUS! YOUR ALLEGIANCE SHOULD BE TO THIS CITY, NOT SOME PURPLE HARLOT WHO PROBABLY DOES NOT EVEN LIVE HERE!” After being released by the Lamia, Julia angrily walks away, slamming the watchtower’s door behind.

“I-I uhmm… I’m deeply sorry about this incident… I didn’t expect to have any foreign visits this late in the night…” The Lamia guard sheepishly adds after rubbing her bloodied hand.

“N-Neither did I!” Alcedinus nervously responds… After this whole incident was over, you are finally granted permission to access the city.

>>227673

After jumping on the back of the wagon, you see Smija completely wrapped in the cloth the Gallus brothers use to cover their goods. Not a single word was said by your party until you finally travelled quite the distance away from the watchtower… Both Inzi and Delwen are placidly asleep in the very back, Regula appears to be quite frightened by the scene she just witnessed as she tightly holds Cornelius’ hand, unsuspecting that the man driving the cart is none other than her brother Alcedinus… Smija, on the other hand, coils her body around you, dragging you closer.

With teary eyes and sadness in her face, she says “I-I’m sorry… That was no way of receiving my beloved Sweetie a-and his friends…” Smija circles her arms around you, adding “Sh-She called me a purple harlot…” Then, with heart-breaking puppy eyes and a sad frown, she tells everyone “J-Just so you know, I don’t enjoy doing things such as bossing people around or acting high and mighty… B-But the situation called for it… I-I couldn’t allow them to throw you out! I-I hope you understand… I had to have my Sweetie back… Tonight… N-Not tomorrow or the day after… B-But right now…” And after blushing, she adds “A-Also, Otho is not my plaything… I like to think of him as my equal, just as I think about everyone else… I-I am in no way s-superior to anybody.”

“Well, ya certainly saved us from even more annoyin’ paperwork and regulations y’know?” Alcedinus chuckles.

You on the other hand, kiss Smija’s cheek whilst stroking her hair “Hi… Good to see you again.” You say with a warm smile, hesitating to call her ‘mistress’… You do not want to break her heart any further.

Smija swiftly hugs you, resting her head over your shoulder and softly whispering into your ear “Hello… It is great to finally have you back… My love. I love you… A-And I missed you so much.”

“Ohhh thank you so much for helpin’ us back there… I don’t know who the new guards are, but I do recall talkin’ to Vasili more than once! Kinda odd he didn’t recognize me today… He looks awfully thin as well! I wonder if he’s sick or somethin’… So… Y-Yeah! I’m Regula Gallus! I’m uhh… A librarian! And this is Cornelius, he’s also a librarian! And a very grumpy one I gotta say!”

“H-Hi! I’m… Umm… I-I’m… I-I…” Smija sheepishly stammers whilst blushing profusely; it is time for you to step in.

“This is my Smija!” You say with a smile, tightly pulling her closer “And she’s my bride-to-be!” You can feel the way Smija begins to melt in your arms. Placidly smiling, she rests her head over your shoulder.

>>227674

Sadly, the moment is short-lived as Alcedinus calls you from the driver’s seat “Hey shorty, a word…” After you make it through the moving wagon --without losing balance-, he has you sit down right next to him and quite worriedly whispers into your ear “So… Ya think I should tell ‘Sis who I am? She seemed a bit… Uneasy, so to speak. She didn’t really grow up here in Septentria… Causin’ her to be skittish ‘round undead. Kinda ironic, ain’t it?” But then, after sighing, he adds “Y’know what? Fuck it, I’m tellin’ her once we arrive. I-Is it really her? Like, what did’ya do to make Regula break outta the nonsense she used to spout?” Thus begins a short recount of the events taking place in the last few days… After you are done, somewhat amazed Alcedinus replies “Huh, figures… Pesky demons always meddling with our mortal souls and such… And sorry ‘bout the ghouls, seems like my brother forgot to tell ya how dangerous they were… Just a dumb warning ain’t sufficient, ‘don’t go out at night’? Pfftt, ya gotta make people understand that ghouls don’t fuck ‘round! Damn bonehead!” He mockingly chuckles right afterwards “Also… That was a nice display of fireworks! My shriveled lips are sealed, don’tcha worry!”

When your short conversation is over -and halfway through towards the back of the wagon- Smija swiftly coils her tail around your torso, lifting your whole body with little effort and subsequently sitting you right next to her. After you are right under her warm snake embrace, she finishes her sentence “…A-And that is how I won Otho’ s love! He and I are getting married! S-Someday… I-I hope… See? He even gave me a wedding band!” Smija proudly presents her engagement ring to both Regula and Cornelius.

“Ohhhh that’s so great! Congratulations!” Regula exclaims with a smile, nudging Cornelius “C’mon Cornie, say somethin’! Stop bein’ so grumpy, she’s such a lovely girl!”

Cornelius frowns in disgust “Yeah, whatever… Nice. Good for you.”

“Just excuse him; he’s always been a tad bitter. Ain’t that right, Cornie?” Regula smugly remarks… Grumbling, Cornelius promptly leaves her side and sits with Alcedinus, “S-Sorry, but he has a bit of a… Ummhh… Problem with… With…” Regula stammers, ashamed by the rudeness of her companion.

“With my presence… I understand…” Smija answers rather downcast, “The looks he gave me… I-I know the way he feels like, th-this is not the first time I find myself in this situation… I’m already used to it… The disgust… The anger… The abduction of someone he cared for… I can see it in his eyes…” Then, Smija pleads with teary eyes: ”Mr. Cornelius, I’m deeply sorry… I really am…”

“Blaming yourself and apologizing about a transgression you had no part in… What for? I’m sure blaming yourself won’t bring anyone back… and no amount of apologies will change my opinion about your kind in the slightest.” Cornelius then turns around, remaining silent.

On that very moment, many things came through your mind. The way Cornelius feels about the abduction of his brother is understandable and so are his opinions about Apophes. But his rudeness is inexcusable, Smija had no part in that event as it happened way before she was born and throwing all her kind into the same pile of abductor-rapists with little regard for personal liberties is not nice at all. Outraged by the way he treated Smija, you stand up to have a few words with him… Until Smija yet again tightly coils around you, plonking you back into the seat. Lightly sobbing, she shakes her head twice, burying her face on your armored chest shortly afterwards.

“Conelius look what ya did! You made her cry!” Regula angrily exclaims “Once I see my li’l’ brothers again, we’re gonna have a discussion regarding your insensibilities!”

“P-Please let him be… H-His pain is justified and so is his attitude… If it is of any use, I do not condone such kinds of behavior: Kidnapping men and tearing families apart is preposterous to say the least… It only leads to false affection and further broken households on our part… J-Just like mine…” Smija lightly sobs “My only solace is to know there is someone who will always be there for me, unconditionally… Because I earned his love… B-Because he is free to leave my side whenever he pleases… But I know he will never abandon me.” Smija tightly holds you in a hug… Despite the delays and the unsavory situation with Cornelius, you finally felt safe and sound in the lovely embrace of your sweetheart, falling asleep shortly afterwards.

>>227675

Soft whispers and hissings interrupt your sleep; you feel someone lightly stroking your hair and you are unable to move… After groggily opening your eyes, you see Smija lovingly gazing at you. She plants a small peck over your lips and says most gently “I am sorry for interrupting your slumber, Sweetie… Please resume your sleep, you seem very tired…”

“Uhghh… ‘Morning… What was that all about?”

She cutely giggles in response “Dummy, it’s not morning yet! I laid you in bed almost an hour ago… I…” Smija blushes a bit “W-Well… I carried you all the way from outside; I hope you don’t mind… You looked so cute, sleeping like a little baby. It would have been cruel to wake you up…” She pauses for a moment, momentarily avoiding eye contact “And as for what I was doing… I was… Praying. A-And thanking Glycon for your safe return… Y-You see, I pray every night: For our friends and family, for our safekeeping and for you… Mostly for you… You had me really worried” Afterwards, her face turns into a sad and worried frown “I know you caused that huge detonation some hours ago… I was deathly afraid, profoundly preoccupied for your wellbeing. I-I… I was about to rush outside to track you down, but Oracle stopped me… She said I needed to remain here and you specifically told her not to look for you unless told otherwise. She and I had… An argument.”

“I-It was nothing severe I can assure you… B-But the discussion got a bit heated. I must admit I was desperate… I… I was having an attack of anxiety,” Ashamed, Smija pauses for a moment, adding “But now it’s over… She made me see reason and the recklessness of my decision and I made her understand the cultural differences between humans and my kind. Needless to say we are back in good terms… And… I feel very ashamed of raising my voice… I yelled at her, Sweetie… But she forgave me. Lady Oracle said she had been in my same situation, knowing her dearest man was in great peril, but ultimately being powerless because he willed it so in order to spare her from equally great dangers…” Then, with a warm smile, she adds “That’s the reason I snuck into the cart after I knew you were at the gates… I had to see you again. And I’m sorry for acting that way in front of the guards… You very well know that is not my usual self, nor do I enjoy treating others like my inferiors…” Afterwards, Smija envelops you in her warm embrace; she buries your head between her luscious purple bosoms and proceeds to softly caress your hair. After a moment of silence, she whispers “And once more we are finally reunited. I love you, my dearest Sweetie, and I will never ever abandon you…” You fall asleep once more, in the warm embrace of your lover.

>>227677

Yet again you wake up to a soft caress. Your head lies over Smija’s lap; her snake body is wrapped all around yours. She greets you with a warm smile and a kiss on your forehead “Good afternoon my love, I hope you slept well.” You certainly did, perhaps her lovely embrace was what you needed; so comfortable was her embrace, you fell asleep back again… Several times in fact, with Smija diligently remaining in place, stroking your hair whilst humming tones unknown to you. It was perhaps the seventh time you woke up, and most definitively the last one, when you finally opened your eyes, trying to sit back up; but Smija is having none of that, with great might she keeps you in place, lovingly staring deep into your eyes. If you cannot beat them, join them, they say… Thus you decide to remain in place, not forcing your way out any further; Smija did say she would never ever abandon you, and perhaps this is what she really meant, you have now become a prisoner of her lovely embrace.

As she softly strokes your hair, you inquire about the state of the party… Smija replies with a smile: “Inzi and Delwen are still profoundly asleep… It appears that Inzi got all of her energy drained away and she will be in need of much rest, but don’t worry about her, that is natural amongst reptilians or so Lady Oracle says… Regula has finally reunited with her long-lost brothers and nana in a very emotive scene; they are very happy, Sweetie… All thanks to you… Although Miss Regula still appears a bit shocked about the state of her property and her brothers’ undeath; she can’t quite accept the fact that she had… Died. It is sad, but I am sure her brothers and Mr. Cornelius will help her along… And as for Mr. Cornelius… He has been avoiding both me and my sister. Maja thought about bothering him, so I had to intervene…” Smija then cutely chuckles “Lady Oracle gave her quite the scolding! It reminded me of so many things; the way we used to play back when we were kids and all the trouble Maja always got into… With me ultimately receiving the blame for all her naughty antics” Then, she blushes profusely adding “And as for you, Sweetie, if you no longer feel like sleeping, you will now be taking a very well deserved bath and having a nice home-cooked meal right after that… No objections, no ‘ifs’ or ‘buts’… You are all mine once more… I-If you don’t mind it so… I-I-I would not want to force you do something you don’t want to do… B-But… I-I th-thought it would be… Ummm I-I…” Smija then becomes a cute mess of nervousness, unable to put two sentences together without heavily stuttering… It is good to be back.

Complying with her orders suggestions, your first stop will be the bath. One thing you noticed before leaving was your nakedness… And the state of your armor: The whole set is completely clean and thoroughly polished; as well as the clothes you wore: Completely washed and patched up. Smija blushes profusely whilst commenting “M-Maja helped me with your equipment… A-And Alethia helped me repair your clothes. I hope you don’t mind… B-But it’s my job as your…” Smija gets closer, kissing your cheek “Bride-to-be! S-So no need to thank me… It is my responsibility after all… A-And I want to be useful to you, I want to stop being a dead weight.” Of course you reminded Smija of her importance in your group, she is in no way a dead weight; and as expected, Smija tried to humbly disagree. You ultimately silenced her with a deep kiss, causing her to melt in your arms and completely agree with you; nobody says your girl is useless, especially not herself.

>>227678

Wasting no time, you head right into the bathroom after quickly putting some clothes on. You notice the big bathing pool has already been filled and it is hot enough for steam to rise. The floor is scattered with rose petals and several bottles of oils and ointments are lined up across a small section of the pool’s edge; Smija did put a lot of effort into it. She cutely smiles and grips both of your hands “Now Sweetie, we’re taking a bath together, but on one condition…” Smija lightly blushes “Y-You will do nothing! I shall be the one to relieve you of your fatigue, clean every corner of your body… A-As well as perform massages, th-thoroughly wash your feet, trim your nails a-and do lovely things in general… B-Because I have lots of pent-up love and I can barely contain myself… B-But sweet lovemaking is out of the question right now, because I don’t want to put too much strain on you, and I know you have to relax b-because you have worked so hard for the last several days…” placing both hands over your shoulders, Smija gets closer to your face, lovingly gazing into your eyes, exclaiming quite excitedly “So I will be performing these special things I had learned back in my maiden years, I can finally put all those husband care lessons up to good use!”

Seeing as Smija is so eager to clean your body, at once you begin to strip… Until she suddenly grabs your hands while exclaiming playfully “No, no, no!~ You are not allowed to undress… Not by yourself~ I-I will be the one to do so… B-Because I think it is… I-It is… Umm… P-Please forgive me for having such lecherous thoughts, Sweetie…” Somewhat ashamed, she looks to the side and blushes profusely “Erotic. I think it is erotic… Y-You can undress me if you so wish~… In fact, you will be the one do so!~ You first!~”

>>227679

Thus, you commence to take her clothes off… You start by her somewhat tight-fitting shirt: slowly undoing the buttons, revealing her soft purple skin; when finally done, you slide it off her arms, revealing her bosoms tightly packed in her usual modest breastband. “The knot is on my back…” Smija sheepishly remarks. Not today… Sliding a hand between her breasts, you swiftly grab the breastband, subsequently pulling it up. Alas, Smija’s breasts have finally been liberated, freely bouncing, you take a moment to admire her beauty after they finally stop moving: Plump, round and perky, your big hand has a little trouble cupping one; suffice to say her breasts are considerably sized. And right after getting a hold of her breasts, one on each hand, you begin to play with her deep-purple nipples: Moving your thumb in circular motions over her rather puffy, inverted areolas; Smija lightly moans as both thumbs softly caress her delicate skin, after several seconds, her nipples are finally ready, standing by for the love that is to come.

Moving onto her long leather skirt, you firstly trace your hands all the way from her torso down to her generous hips; yet again Smija lightly moans as her soft skin is gently caressed by your hands, her breathing is turning a bit strained as she licks her lips every now and again. After carefully undoing the leather straps on her skirt, you softly pull it upwards through her torso, seeking to slide it off her body using the shortest way possible… Until it becomes stuck around her breasts.

You chuckle at the scene; perhaps you are taking her skirt off the wrong way… After softly pulling it upwards, her breasts are finally liberated once again: Smija lightly blushes and says “P-Please don’t laugh at me… I-I… M-My boobies always get in the way… S-Sometimes it is embarrassing; I have no idea how Mother deals with hers as they are a bit bigger than mine… A-And my boobies have always gotten me in trouble with my less gifted siblings, Maja included… They called me unsavory names such as” Smija spouts some words in Drakainaon, then continuing “And even though it was simple childish envy, it still hurt me…” Bigger or not, you reassure Smija that her bust size is quite satisfactory, pleasing both your touch and sight; indeed her sisters have much to envy, for Smija’s beauty is incontestable. Upon hearing these words, Smija’s breathing turns even more strained; she throws herself over you in a lovely hug and begins to assault your face with a barrage of smooches. After she is finally done, Smija prompts you to finish, for she is very eager to have her way with you.

Her double-sided loincloth comes next; such a strange piece of underwear, very modest just like the way Smija is. Consisting of two pieces of cloth draping over both her crotch and butt, under the frontal one is yet another small piece of fabric, but this one somehow manages to stay in place, fully covering her more intimate parts… The back, however, has no secondary cloth under the draping one… A bit risqué you point out; Smija lightly chuckles, a bit ashamed by your playful comment. Once one of the side straps is finally undone, you swiftly take Smija’s underwear off and after grabbing some of that snake booty, you take a moment to admire her naked wholeness.

The envy of a goddess to be sure: Wide child-bearing egg-laying hips; her thighs fused with her snake half in a stark contrast of both scales and skin, indeed quite odd-looking, but still pleasing to the eye, and her lap does make for a really good pillow after all; her luscious crotch with puffy-looking lips, already glistening with love juices. Smija does not have a single pube down there, perhaps this is the way Lamiae are… On the magiknet you have seen enough naked snake ladies to be almost sure about that fact, but you refrain from telling her so for obvious reasons; next you move onto her midriff: Nicely-shaped and with a cute belly button… Along with her delicious hips, they form an erotic combination possibly envied by her siblings as well; after admiring her luscious breast once more -hypnotized by the way they lightly bounce each time Smija breathes- you gaze upon her face: Delicate lips that are a bit plump, forming a shy yet loving smile; Subtle cheeks perfect for kissing and caressing; A delicate small nose and two eyes shaped like almonds, lovingly gazing into yours with unnaturally glistening yellow irises with vertically slit pupils, all contrasting with a jet-black background; above her beautiful eyes are two dainty eyebrows, small strips of black over her lovely purple skin, so full of expression, sometimes words are not needed for you to notice the way Smija feels.

As Smija keeps staring into your eyes, her cheeks begin to blush once more “N-Now that you have already admired my body, it is time for me to bask in yours…”

>>227680

Using her tail, Smija promptly removes your shirt with one swift pull; seems like she is eager to see you naked once again. Leaning against your bare chest, Smija rubs her face against it, tickling you with both her flicking tongue and warm breath; she stays that way for a moment, with her arms circled behind your back and her cheek rubbing against your body. After a long pleasured sigh, Smija says “I missed you so much… In no way was I lonely, but it certainly felt like something was amiss… A part of me was missing. Perhaps it was the other half of my soul, the one that rightfully belongs to you… Or perhaps it was your presence… Your smile… Your green eyes deeply staring into mine… I know I have to be somewhat independent considering your profession… With long periods of time away from me… B-But these four days, twelve hours and fifty-three minutes felt like months to me…” She then cutely chuckles “I did not count the seconds…”

After administering a healthy dose of smooches, Smija then moves down to your trousers. Right after pulling them down, she coils her tail around your torso and chest; lifting you with little effort. Then, very slowly, she starts to pull your underwear down… With her face very close to your manhood and both her flickering tongue and warm breath ticking on it, the guy down below begins to rise, standing strong right in front of your beloved’s face. You can notice a small glint in her eyes as she lovingly stares at your penis, licking her lips every once and again as well as flickering her forked tongue very often… Closing her eyes for a moment, she begins to examine your smell whilst blushing profusely “Your scent is so strong…” she says after licking her lips “It drives me mad… It… I-It drives forth my most carnal and animalistic desires…” Smija then softly grasps on your shaft as well as your scrotum, her delicate hands then begin to softly caress on your most private parts. From below, she gazes upon your eyes, adding “But I am very well aware of your physical capabilities… As well as mine. Sweetie, I… I try my best to stay put. To exercise control over my wildest impulses… Because I don’t want to hurt you…”

Smija puts you down shortly afterwards, once again circling her arms around your back “You are my most prized and valuable possession… And I want you to last me for a very long time…” After a moment, Smija pries off from the hug. Placing both hands over your shoulders, she stares into your eyes with a worrisome expression “Am I being selfish? To have you all for myself for the rest of my life. I want to be there for you… Every day. Is this the way I should feel? This…” She looks to the side with a little shame, adding softly “This attachment… It is very strong…”

She takes a long breath and continues “I know we have not been together for too long… And it might seem drastic for a man to have someone be so madly in love with him after so little time… S-Sometimes I feel like I forced myself upon you. That I unwillingly dragged you into that marriage proposal due to my poor communicational skills and inability to keep myself together when nervous or surprised…”

Afterwards, Smija raises her left hand and begins to longingly stare at her proposal ring “This ring is supposed to signify the binding of our souls… But I have not stopped thinking that maybe… J-Just maybe this was all too sudden for your human mind to handle…” And after staring at it for a moment, she then deeply gazes into your eyes once more “I had a conversation with Lady Oracle… I asked her about human relationships. What causes a man to fall in love with a woman… One of the things she had told me was that sometimes love takes a bit of time to bloom… From several months to even years…” With a shy smile, Smija continues “I am more than sure my love is immeasurable… And I know for a fact that you love deeply me as well… B-But…”

Again she shyly looks to the side, avoiding eye contact “D-Do you not mind our flourishing love to be so sudden? D-Do you feel like I forced myself upon you? That I put my interests ahead yours… A proposal for marriage is a very serious matter and never in my life would I want you to feel uncomfortable about proposing to me after being together for such a short period of time… I-I feel guilty after accidentally making you believe I was pregnant with your children…” And so, her eyes begin to well, lightly sobbing she adds “S-So guilty th-that I have not stopped thinking about it. I could barely sleep all these nights, always thinking of you: About the possible dangers you could be facing and… Th-That perhaps I dragged you into that declaration of eternal love and companionship… Unwillingly.”

>>227681

It appears that Smija is about to cry… Still rather confused about the nature of your union as well as concerned of the way you might feel regarding the sudden marriage proposal, which took place shortly before your adventures in the old library began.

>What do you do?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>227682

do as we always do when our grep snek waifu is upset: headpats and kissies

also, if she wants we could hold off on the actual ceremony for a little while so she can feel comfortable knowing that we actually do love her because we do

>>227681

>>227682

Hug Sjima and tell her to stop hating her self and thinking shes a monster. Scratch her head

>>227682

>Not dead

Fuck yeah!

Tell Smija that we actually have known her for almost a year since we met her on 11/12/15 however long we've known her is plenty long enough

Remember that we already had the ring on us, we were going to propose anyways, pregnancy scare or no.

>>227740

>however long we've known her *in-universe

I'm not actually sure how much in-game time has passed since we met Smija

>>227682

Tell her that non pregnancy is an issue we'll have to correct sooner or later

>>227754

on her own time btw

>>227709

I think we should expand on this maybe asking her if she hates Otho and as she will obviously say no, tell her that those who hate on Smija also hate Otho by default. Ask her to please stop hating on herself and if she can't do it for herself then do it for Otho instead, we don't know how rough she's had it (well aside from a fugitive father who probably dislikes her and a few bully sisters) but hating herself won't solve anything as it does more harm than good, especially for those who deeply care about her.

Also brace for a steady stream of tears and sappy moments I don't know how much that's going to hit on our feels.

I predict a downpour with a chance of backbreaking hugs and cuddles.

Guys I'm terribly sorry to inform about this, but due to several personal reasons I will no longer be able to update this CYOA today, so I'm gonna update tomorrow instead.

I hate updating only once a week.

>>229489

fuck you, you almost got me there

>>227682

Moments like these are what really make you wonder what goes through the mind of Smija; how quickly she can devolve from happy to very worried and even sad. You know for a fact that both her insecurities and worries are great and perhaps you will never be able to correct these… In spite of all her faults, you really have become very fond of Smija; so fond of your dear snake princess, so precious she is to you, that right before taking off on a perilous adventure, you proposed to her…

Yes, the scare Smija gave you --about an accidental pregnancy- might have played a small part on your sudden proposition, but nevertheless you were already planning a marriage proposal sooner or later, with her being pregnant or not and completely disregarding the brief time the two of you have been together; after all, you had bought her a nice ring a few days prior and were saving it up for the right moment… As sudden and abrupt that moment might have been, you wanted to demonstrate your love and commitment for her. In no way did she drag you into an unwilling marriage proposition, and it was your responsibility to make Smija understand the fact that you, by your own initiative, want to marry her in the near future.

Completely silent, Smija wistfully stares at her ring; tears begin to form in her eyes as she lightly sobs. You slowly reach for her raised hand, and with fingers intertwined, you tightly hold it; despite the coldness of her skin, her gentle touch makes you feel warm inside. “I did it because I wanted to… Not because you dragged me into it.” You respond with a candid smile, adding afterwards “That little scare you gave me might’ve played a part, but… I… I had been planning a proposal for some time; that’s why I bought you the ring!” Then, placing both hands over her shoulders, you continue “Smija, you didn’t drag me into anything… Don’t you think that perhaps I love you as much as you love me? Does the short time we’ve been together really matter? However long I’ve known you is plenty long enough.”

“B-But…” Smija stammers, trying to contain her tears “What about humans d-developing loving relationships through extended periods of time? A-According to Oracle… I-It takes much trust and love for a human marriage to be conceived… T-Trust and love which grows over the course of months or even years… A-And during said period of time, a woman must demonstrate how much she is willing to sacrifice for her beloved husband… A-And because…” She sobs lightly “B-Because humans and my kind work in very different ways… I-I d-don’t want to force myself upon you in the manner that is customary for Apophises… I-I want to demonstrate that I can be a worthy wife… Th-That is the reason I feel like this…” With a single tear rolling down her cheek, Smija finishes “B-Because I feel like I-I am not worthy of someone like you… W-Willing to sacrifice so much for me w-while getting nothing in return.”

“You have already demonstrated how much you love and care for me, with staunch devotion and willingness to become my wife. Honestly, I’d be an idiot if I didn’t wanna marry you!” You respond with a smile, pulling her even closer, adding “But the most important part is that I trust you, Smija. You’ve shown me your willingness to protect me… Remember that one time I first milked you, when the Minotaur tried to beat me up? Or the first dinner we had together with Maja? You put me before yourself. Do I need more proof of how much you are willing to sacrifice for me?” Then, caressing her cheeks with both hands, you wipe some of her tears off using your thumb, continuing “And as for getting nothing in return… What more do I need? Isn’t your love enough? For me it is…”

For a moment, Smija tries holding her tears back… Ultimately failing after, diving straight into your arms, breaking out in tears and wails as she buries her face on your naked chest. As it is customary, you begin to administer a healthy dose of love in the form of headpats and kisses; afterwards, you sit on the floor while Smija keeps latched onto you… With a tight hug, the two of you remain that way for quite a while, enveloped by Smija’s lovely tail…

>>229709

As you softly scratch Smija’s head, she deeply gazes into your eyes still in tears… Sobbing, Smija stammers for a bit before being able to put two sentences together “I-I… I-I w-was uns-sure… B-Because we… W-We have o-only had one date… A-And… A-And h-humans develop f-feelings v-v-very… v-v-very slowly…”

You lightly chuckle, responding with a smile: “Well, we’ve pretty much lived together for a while. Doesn’t that count as one big date? We do many things together: we travel, sleep and eat together!” Smija sighs deeply, perhaps reminiscing of your adventures… Then, you add “Come to think of it… How long have we been together? It kinda feels like I’ve known you for a very long time!”

Wiping some of her tears, Smija warmly smiles as she momentarily closes her eyes… Then, gazing at you most lovingly, she says “Sixty-seven days, four hours… And… Um…” She pauses for a moment, thoughtfully frowning “Forty-nine minutes… I-I think… I-I could be wrong! B-But I think it has been that long.” You chuckle before plating yet another lovely kiss on her forehead… Has she been counting all the passing days since the very first time you two met? Or does she just remember each and every moment the two of you have spent together? You are not sure; Smija is not one to lie and she did mention Apophes possessing higher mental capabilities… It matters little, though, for you two are finally together once more… Providing the love and care Smija’s fragile feelings require.

>>229710

After a moment of lovely consolation, with Smija still in your arms, lovingly staring into your eyes, she says after hesitating several times “I want to understand the way you, as a human, feel…”

“About what?” You inquire.

“The way you feel about me…” She briefly avoids eye-contact, adding “B-Being different… Being… Who I am. Not a human… A… M-Mons---” You quickly place a hand over her mouth before she could say that last word…

Lightly frowning, you say “You are nothing of that sort… We have talked about this, why must you bring it up again?” After softly caressing her cheek, you add “Smija, in no way you are a monster. You are a lovely and perhaps misunderstood demihuman girl! I’m well aware lamias have often been classified as… ‘Monsters’, but tell me, would a monster break into tears each time she feels insecure? Would a monster be able to love and care for someone so tenderly? Would a monster be as pretty as you are? For me, the answer is no.” Smija shyly smiles as you continue “That’s just old superstitions! People feared lamias and thought they devoured and killed men and whatnot… That’s not what you do.” She slowly shakes her head; you continue “Well, maybe Apophes do kidnap men… Sometimes… But they don’t kill them!”

Smija looks to the side, unsure what to say… After a short pause and a few strokes on her hair, you say “I want you to stop hating yourself… And thinking that you are some sort of monster.” With a sad frown, Smija closes her eyes in shame, again slowly shaking her head side to side; you continue “Do you hate me?”

Her eyes suddenly open; she looks at you in surprise as she shakes lightly by the bluntness of your question. Smija exclaims “N-Never! I cannot hate you… I-I could never do such thing!”

“Those who hate on my Smija are obligated to hate me as well… For somebody to hate on such a lovely girl… It’s not right; I can’t allow it to happen.” You sternly say, adding afterwards “Please Smija, I beg you, stop hating yourself… And if you can’t do it for yourself, then do it for me… Your self-hatred hurts me as much as it does to you… I have no idea how rough your life has been, but hating yourself won’t solve anything! It does more harm than good, especially for those who care deeply for you.” Then, after placing your hand over her cheek, you finish “And if you hate yourself… Then you too are obligated to hate me…”

>>229712

With eyes wide open, Smija suddenly sits up, exclaiming “Sweetie! I-I had no idea you felt that way!” Placing both hands over your shoulders, she says appalled “Goodness, how shameful… I-It was not my intention to hurt your feelings… H-How terribly ashamed I am… My deepest and most sincere apologies to you, my love. I-I… I-I-I… I have no idea what to say…” Then, as her eyes well up once more, Smija begs “Please forgive me… P-Please… I-I-I… I-I have failed you… A-And hurt you in the process…”

“Smija… You haven’t failed anyone.” You say with a warm smile, afterwards adding with some preoccupation “It just… Makes me feel sad whenever I see you cry, or whenever you refer to yourself in a derogatory manner. If anything… If anything it feels like I’m the one who has failed you!” Then, with a sad frown, you continue “That I have failed to make you happy, that I have failed to make you feel secure about yourself… And dammit I always try to put a smile on your face! So please, if you don’t do it for yourself… Then do it for me. Love yourself a bit more… You’re a wonderful girl, Smija! But you only see your flaws and failures…”

You place a hand over her cheek, wiping a single tear off and continuing “I know everybody has flaws and neither of us are the exceptions, but… But there’s also a bright side! There are many positive things about you: A great memory, I was surprised when you remembered the days and hours we’ve been together as well as the days I was absent! Also, you are a VERY loving and selfless person and… Well, Maja said you were pretty good at casting dark magic, that has to count as well! And most important… You are very passionate and committed to your ideals” Placing another hand on her other cheek, you continue “You were able to conquer my heart with that unwavering resolute of yours! That too has to count for something, don’t you think? I can bet if you put some other goals in your mind, you will be able to swiftly conquer them the same way you did with me! And for that reason, I think you will become a damn fine wife… Because I know you will put your whole heart into it!”

Smija begins sob as more tears roll down, wetting your hands in the process… With the warmest smile you could muster, you say “So please, Smija, please do it for me… Love yourself a bit more… I’m not asking you to become egocentric… I just… I just want you to have a bit more self-respect, to raise your confidence a bit!” After pulling her closer, you do a final request “Could you do it for your Sweetie?”

“I-I h-have… B-Been… B-Blessed…” Smija stutters as she suddenly goes limp, collapsing into your arms, “I-I… I-I c-cannot… B-Believe… … U-Unable to believe… … Th-The p-precious gift th-that has been granted to me…” She stammers with closed eyes “S-S-Sweetie… I-I… I-I-I… Have no words.” And finally, she circles her arms around your back, once again burying her face on your chest; her long snake body soon follows, fully enveloping the two of you in a lovely cocoon of sorts. Smija mutters once more “No words… C-Can express the way I feel…” And shortly afterwards, she begins to cry; her somewhat cold tears wetting your whole chest. Smija desperately clings onto you, rubbing her face against your chest whilst muttering words in her native language… Closing your eyes and softly stroking her hair, you provide Smija with the emotional support she so desperately needs…

>>229713

And so, after a very long time of consolation, Smija finally stops crying. She raises her head, gazing upon your eyes most lovingly whilst wiping off some of the remaining tears. After a final sob and a long sigh, Smija sits up. Wrapping her arms behind your shoulders and getting her face very close to yours, joining foreheads in the process and deeply staring at you with her beautiful eyes, she says “F-For you… For you I would travel through the whole underworld… I would defeat countless opponents… I would… I-I would give my life for you… I would be willing to sacrifice my life for whom I hold in the highest regard… I-I would do it for you, my Sweetie… I would do anything for you… Anything you ask, I shall do… Because I owe you so… Because I love you…”

Lightly chuckling, you say “C-Come on Smija, I should be the one to say that! Going such lengths for my sweetheart, that’s my job!”

After briefly closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Smija purses her lips, placing her mouth close to yours. Then, very passionately, she begins to softly massage your lips between hers. Smija gently squeezes on your lower lip before moving onto the upper one, letting out passionate moans in the process… After a moment of playful nibbling, Smija tilts her head to one side, connecting her mouth with yours. Then, with her tongue, she begins to explore every corner of your mouth doing slurpy lewd sounds; she twines her tongue around yours, still massaging your lips with hers. Her taste and smell are delightful to say the least, and after each time she moaned, her somewhat cold breath invaded the insides of your mouth as well as her sweet voice resonating throughout your whole body.

Then, with her mouth still connected with yours, Smija pins you down to the floor. And shortly thereafter, she separates from the kiss leaving a small strand of saliva hanging from one corner of her lips. One would think a situation such as this one entails much lasciviousness from your lover, but Smija is not the case: In her eyes and smile you could see pure and sweet love.

With her tail, Smija reaches for one of the scented oil bottles and after removing the corkstopper, she then begins to slowly pour rose-scented oil all over your erect penis. After gently coiling the tip of her tail all around your penis and scrotum, Smija lays herself atop of you, caressing your chest and planting kisses all over your face. Warmly smiling, she cutely chuckles, saying “Love is the only compensation I can give you… Please accept my gift, for I have put my whole heart into it…” Then, leaning closer to your face, Smija plants a small peck over your lips, whispering “Just like you have asked.”

>>229714

After lightly squeezing your member, Smija’s coils begin to slowly slide up and down whilst undulating, sending shivers down your whole body. Then, with the very tip of her tail, she begins to gently massage on your frenulum That’s the sensible membrane of skin connecting the foreskin with the benis itself. there, I spared you from searching the term on jewgle., causing you to helplessly let out a single pleasured moan.

Smija blushes profusely, cupping her hands over your cheeks, and in tears she joyfully adds “Y-You moaned!” Smiling once more “I made my Sweetie moan in pleasure! I shall treasure this moment forever!” She then begins to assault your mouth once more, her tongue dancing with yours as she softly caresses your lips… All while she keeps stroking your member, its wholeness enveloped by her scaly tail. The technique employed by Smija is superb to say the least, and coupled with the softness of her pillowy underscales, Smija is able to send immeasurable amounts of pleasure throughout your whole body… Just by employing her tail.

As she keeps lightly squeezing and stroking your penis, Smija suddenly ceases her assault on your mouth. Joining her forehead with yours, she looks directly into your eyes, whispering most lovingly “C-Could you… Please moan for me one more time?” Then, without a notice, Smija’s tail tightens a bit, softly caressing on your scrotum as the speed of her tailjob and frenulum massage increases. Once again this sends shivers down your whole body; the pleasure is making you lightheaded… And once more you inevitably let out a pleasured moan before blushing profusely. This causes Smija’s smile widen and for a brief moment, you could see the shape of a heart glowing in both of her eyes. Smija squeaks in happiness, saying “Y-You did it again! I’m so happy I am able to properly please my husband!… F-Future h-husband!”

And so, for a somewhat extended period of time, Smija wrings your penis. The pleasure experienced was truly immeasurable, and as time passed, her technique got progressively better; slowing down whenever you almost reached climax, only to continue her lovely stroking with a faster pace right thereafter. Countless moans you let out, which made Smija happier and happier one after another… Many times did she assault your mouth with lovely kisses as well, with such passion and love she did so, her face beamed like the full moons on a clear night. As Smija kept delaying your climax with the employ of mystical lamia techniques; once again she separates from the kiss, positioning herself near your still-enveloped penis.

With a mischievous smile she says “And now… For the grand finale!~” Smija spreads your legs wide apart and after quickly removing her tail, she envelops her long forked tongue around your throbbing member… Then right after, Smija lowers her head, engulfing your whole member inside her mouth… Smija proceeds to thoroughly suck on your penis whilst gently caressing your balls. Lewd slurping sounds echo all around as she stares at you with beaming eyes… It appears Smija has no gag reflex whatsoever, as you can very well feel your penis going right into her throat.

Your whole body feels as light as a feather, quivering in pleasure each time she sucked; Smija’s abilities are incredible to say the least, the way she milks your member whole, as well as the way she softly caresses you scrotum, penis and frenulum all put you in a state of ecstasy. Then, after a while of thoroughly sucking, you feel climax finally approaching; Smija somehow is able to notice as well, as she is now frantically sucking as well as sliding her tongue all around your shaft.

After a final suck, Smija squeezes your penis whole using her tongue, causing you to reach the most incredible climax you have experienced so far… Your mind goes momentarily blank from the ridiculous amount of pleasure and as you explode inside her mouth, she lets out sweet moans; the vibrations from her lovely voice somehow cause your pleasure to multiply tenfold… And then, with both arms and legs falling limply to the sides, your vision blurs, thereafter losing consciousness.

>>229715

Yet again you wake up, head rested over Smija’s pillowy lap. With one hand she lightly strokes your hair while she erotically licks and sucks her fingers in the other… It really is strange to witness Smija do such things… You take a minute to admire the underside of her luscious breasts looming right above your face as well as the way she indulges herself in the remainders of your seed. And after a few seconds of admiration, Smija finally takes notice of your consciousness with a warm and sweet smile.

With your breath still somewhat strained and basking in the afterglow of that one final orgasm, you say between pants “S-Smija… Each time we do it together… Y-You surprise me with something different… A-And better… M-More lovely… … G-Good technique… I-I thought you were an inexperienced maiden… I-I…. Uhh… ….” You are having trouble to put two sentences together, causing you to blush profusely “Dammit Smija… Wh-Where on mundus… D-Did you learn all this? Surely they don’t teach such lewd things in Apophis School… Do they?”

“W-Well I… I-I do try… I-I try my best for you” Smija sheepishly stammers whilst blushing “I-I told you I… I-I try to control my wildest impulses… and… W-Well” She looks to the side somewhat ashamed “E-Everything I know comes from my formative lessons… As well as the knowledge imparted by few of my senior siblings, aunts and mother… A-And… I-I was really good at husband care! I actually aced all the lessons with excellent grades as well as with several commemorations! And I… Th-This is a bit embarrassing…” Her blush now reaches new levels of cuteness, as her whole face now looks like red-hot metal… After stuttering for a bit, Smija is able to get a hold of herself, saying “Th-They made us work our techniques on dummies… Which… umm… Th-They tested and measured the pleasure I-I was able to give…” Smija briefly avoids eye contact, continuing “I-I surpassed m-many experienced teachers… A-And… W-Well, some of them were envious about it, e-even my classmates were jealous of my abilities…” Then, with a face beaming with happiness, Smija adds “Th-That was the first time mother praised me… She said I was able to please a man just the way Glycon intended it to be… Like a true Aneb…”

Then, somewhat worriedly, she says “A-And as for the dummy… P-Please do not get jealous… I-It was a lifeless magical doll which took the shape of the person I desired the most…” After cutely giggling, Smija places both hands over her cheeks, blushing even more whilst squirming “Mine looked like you… With your lovely face obscured. And throughout the whole time, I thought only about you… About how much I would be able to love and pleasure my Sweetie, the boy I saved my maidenhood for… The lovely boy I had never met… B-But I somehow knew we were destined to be together…” Then, Smija deeply gazes into your eyes “Since a long time ago, I knew you would be mine even though we were far away from one another… Just by imagining your smile, by imagining you lovingly stroking my hair, patting my head, kissing my cheeks… The thought of you saying ‘I love you Smija’… It made me continue… It… I-It made me succeed for once…” After a long sigh, with teary eyes, Smija yet again gives you a warm smile, her whole face beaming with passion and love “Sweetie… You are my greatest achievement, my greatest victory… And even though I do not condone husband ownership, I consider you… I-I consider you to be my most prized possession… My most treasured belonging… My lovely Sweetie. Mine and mine only… And just the same way I own you, you own me… I am rightfully yours… My heart, soul and body, all belong to you.”

You respond with an equally beaming smile; at times like this, words are hardly needed… Weakly sitting up, you reach for Smija and after circling your arms around her back, you dive right into her lovely bosoms. With your head now buried in Smija’s chest, you commence to slowly and softly rub your cheek against her body… Smija’s body remains somewhat cold, but the warmth from her love makes you feel all fuzzy inside. Such is the power of your lovely snake… Enveloped under Smija’s embrace, the two of you silently cuddle, still basking in the afterglow of your climax.

>>229719

Later, Smija massaged your whole body with the same rose-scented oil she had previously used for her kinky endeavors; enveloping you with her long, scaly tail and rubbing it all against your body. The way her coils moved in different directions, as well as the way her soft underscales rubbed against your skin, felt wonderful. After trimming both nails and toenails, Smija finalized with a foot massage using both her tail and lovely hands; it appears Smija finds your feet to be interesting, as she thinks your toes are cute for the way they wiggled each time she playfully tickled your feet, as well for the many times she commented on how different they looked compared with your hands… She really does like your feet, as strange as that might sound. The bath which came afterwards was truly delightful as well: Smija thoroughly rubbed her body against yours, playfully cleaning your back with her soapy breasts as well as every corner of your body with her scaly tail.

And of course, you cleaned Smija’s body too… All of it, seven meters-long tail included. Groping her squishy breasts as well as playing with her nipples, grabbing her buttcheeks and exploring every corner of her body; she is somewhat ticklish too, cutely giggling each time you softly traced your fingers over her underarms and neck. After the hard --but thoroughly enjoyable- task of cleaning her long tail with soap, Smija motions you to sit beside her over an underwater ledge. Holding your hand and resting her head over your shoulder, Smija sights, saying: “Times like these are what I treasure the most. For me to take a bath with my beloved Sweetie, as well as being able to relieve him by doing lovely things to his body… It is one of the best feelings I could ever ask for… I can truly feel relaxed. I hope you can find the way I treat you to be adequate… After all, this is what I was taught; hundreds of years of knowledge were passed down to me… I-I have to make my foremothers proud! But what is of utmost importance to me is: …” After cutely nibbling on your ear, Smija whispers “That I get to make my Sweetie feel good after he has been tirelessly working for the past few days.” Moments pass in silence, until Smija tightens her hold on your hand, sheepishly adding “I am truly sorry for hurting your feelings… I do recognize my self-esteem issues and I will try my hardest in order to overcome my troubles… B-But… I still feel bad about inadvertently hurting you… As well as scaring you with the question of my hypothetical pregnancy…”

With a reassuring smile, you answer after chuckling “You know what I really think is an issue? You not being pregnant… We’ll have to correct that sooner or later! … O-On your own time that is… Wh-Whenever you feel ready…”

Smija looks at you with a beaming smile, her eyes teary and her cheeks blushed; she then throws herself over you, tightly hugging you with both arms and tail, as well as kissing you many times “Sweetie you make me so happy! So so so so happy!” Smija exclaims in bliss each time after planting a kiss.

Bath time was over after perhaps half an hour of relaxation; after promptly cleaning the oily mess as well as the many rose petals strewn all over the floor, you helped Smija dress up… Putting both her loincloth and skirt on, binding her breasts within the breastband, buttoning her shirt and helping Smija comb her long, silky hair… Smija too did the same with you, helped you dress up; cutely giggling each time she finished put a clothing piece back on… By her words, dressing you up feels like playing with big, life-sized doll; one she thinks is very lovely, and more important, alive and with a mind of his own.

>>229720

When stepping out of the bathroom, and after Smija waited outside until you were done with some private businesses you put on hold for some time, once again Smija informs you, with a placid smile on her face, that it is now time for supper. Not wanting to bother you with silly things such as walking, she immediately coils herself around you, lifting you up and subsequently carrying your whole body towards the dining hall.

The insides of the villa appear to be deserted, as both Oracle and the Nana are buying food… Smija says she got a bit excited about learning how to cook human meals, she accidentally made too much food… which sadly depleted most of the supplies stored in the pantry; The Gallus siblings, along with the maids, are showing both Regula and Cornelius around town; Both Inzi and Delwen remain asleep; Dotouzi and Alethia are quite possibly doing kinky things in their bedroom… That, or Alethia is still trying to teach Dotouzi how to speak the common tongue; Maja is probably cloistered inside her bedroom playing strategy simulations on her magic ball; and finally, Elus and the Werewolves must playing outside like they always do… Life is good, and for the first time in several years, it feels like you are part of a family…

The sounds of banging pots and cookware can be heard coming from the kitchen, and after several minutes of waiting, Smija comes out with a huge platter on her hands, it is filled with pastae; after setting the platter on the table, Smija begins to serve the noodles with a special tong. Once again she disappears into the kitchen, bringing back a two bowls, one with green sauce and one with grated cheese; she sets both in front of you as well. With a ladle, Smija pours plenty of sauce over your pastae, afterwards sprinkling lots of grated cheese over it.

Shyly smiling, Smija says “I-I hope you enjoy it… I made it myself.”

The sauce has a sharp and fragrant smell of both herbs and garlic, the pastae appears to be properly cooked and strained and the cheese, well, it is cheese, one cannot go wrong with aged cheese, especially on pastae. After twirling some noodles on your fork, dipping them on the sauce and cheese mixture and taking them to your mouth, you give it a good taste evaluation: The sauce has a very strong smell and flavor of garlic, cheese, olive oil and herbs, mostly rosemary and basil, and something chunky you cannot quite tell what it is; The pastae is properly cooked, ad dente, firm to the bite, neither too salty nor bland. All in all, Smija’s cooking is superb! Even though the sauce is a bit strong, it has a pleasant taste and the flavors blend pretty well along with the cheese; you like it a lot, it is sublime.

“Thish ish very goodh!” You say with a mouthful while taking another forkful of noodles; after all, you are very hungry.

“R-Really?!” Smija clasps both hands together, her face shining with happiness “Katya and Nana said it was good… B-But I had to get confirmation from my beloved Sweetie!” Then, Smija grabs a plate and begins eating alongside you… “T-To be honest, and not to sound boastful, but… I really like too. Both Oracle and Nana taught me how to make many sauces, but this one was my favorite… Even though it has no meat, I like it because its flavor is so strong I can actually taste it! The smell might be very pungent, b-but mind it… The sauce is called ‘Moretum’, from a very old recipe Lady Oracle passed down to me… It can be served cold or hot, and it contains garlic, many herbs, oil, cheese, pine nuts and absurd quantities of love!” Smija cutely blushes “The pastae was also made by me… Oracle and Nana taught me how to make it with flour, oil, eggs and the most important ingredient: Love! Th-They said I… I-I’m a good cook and a quick learner as well… But I thought they just wanted to make me feel better because my cooking wasn’t very good at all… B-But if you do like it, then it means I have succeeded.” Smija then proceeds to quickly devour her plate of pastae, serving you and herself a bit more after she is done. In the end, you ate about two and a half plates of pastae; Smija on the other hand, ate six… Lamiae do eat a lot after all. Smija then brings you a jug of grape juice; she says it is to wash down the funny smell of garlic, cheese and herbs which, for a few hours, persists in your mouth after eating… She also made the juice, which was pretty good too: foamy and sweet, non-alcoholic since she cannot hold her alcohol pretty well.

With both your belly and heart filled with love, you thank Smija for the meal she had prepared just for you. She appears delighted to say the least, after working so hard for you; love is the only compensation she asks for… Love in the form of hugs, headpats and kisses.

>>229721

As you are about to stand up, and shortly after Smija washed the dishes (which by the way, she did not let you help her), she lets out a loud yawn whilst rubbing her eyes. Smija appears to be very tired as her sleepy eyes have bags underneath… Perhaps the love she has given you had drained most of her energy. After rubbing her eyes once more, Smija says “I am sorry Sweetie, but I feel a bit tired… I have not slept much… And… A-And…” once again she shyly looks at you, this time with cute puppy eyes, pleading “C-Could you please… Cuddle with me. I think I would be able to sleep better with you by my side… Y-You could leave me after I manage to fall asleep, I-I know you are a busy person and you probably have much work to do… I would not like to keep you away from your responsibilities… B-But… C-Could you please tuck me into bed… A-And perhaps stroke my hair until I fall asleep? It would mean lots to me.”

Warmly smiling, you take Smija’s hand and promptly leave for the bedroom. Once inside, and after she completely undresses herself, Smija dives right into bed; covered with a big blanket, Smija lifts one side with her tail and proceeds to pat the empty space right next to her. Soon after following, you let out a yawn; perhaps you are still a tad tired… Smija then asks with a somewhat sad frown “A-Are you going to leave after I fall asleep? I-I would not mind… Y-You are a busy man, so I understand if you have to…”

With a chuckle, you respond “Smija, I’ll always have time for you no matter how busy I ought to be! Besides, ain’t gonna be busy for the rest of the day… So I’d rather cuddle with you right now, because I’m still a bit tired too! And besides…” You pause for a moment, softly pushing Smija against your chest whilst lightly stroking her hair “How could I even do such thing? Leaving you alone like that, that’s cruel! After being pampered by you… I think now’s your turn! So please do me a favor and coil your tail around me, I’m not going anywhere until tomorrow.”

Following through, Smija promptly cuddles her human half against you and coils her long tail all around your body; with the end of her tail, she forms a nice pillow to rest your head on. For perhaps half an hour you caressed Smija, planting a few kisses on her forehead from time to time. It was dusk when Smija finally fell asleep, softly cooing and murmuring words in Drakainaon; she seemed content, evidenced by the faint smile on her face. You too soon followed minutes later, embracing your lovely snake.

>>229722

Morning finally came with the sound of songbirds, a strange occurrence to be sure; the dreadful surroundings of Napaeca, combined with the harsh and dry environment make it difficult for the birdies to survive… As the faint beams of sunlight descend from the cloudy skies, you find yourself still wrapped under the scaly tail of your lover who is still placidly asleep in your arms. As you once more lightly stroke her hair, Smija begins to wake up.

With a yawn and groggy eyes, she plants a small peck on your cheek and says “Good morning my love; I hope you slept well…” And after several smooches more, Smija adds “So, what will you do today?” For a moment, you ponder at the thought; Indeed there is much to do…

>What will you do today?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>229818

I guess we could check for better equipment, and maybe see if theres anything we can do lovedovey stuff with Smija, like restaurants or see if theres a thing we can do besides sex, after that maybe look for some training, and get some pointers.

>>229902

Let's see, I think this was a slight overlook from my part and I feel like correcting it:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

There's a shitton of loot which needed to be sorted under the 'Phat library lute', since it was so messy, I decided to put some order into it.

The items now have proper descriptions.

We should see if Inzi, Delwen and the oracle are around, we should than confront the demon and figure out what to do with her. Oracle should be ready to smite her if she tries anything

Read our new books and talk with the demon

Upd8 tomorrow for real.

I'm trying to make updates shorter and more constant.

>>229818

“Well…” You say thoughtfully “I could check for some equipment upgrades… Or…” adding with a smile on your face “Maybe I could see if there’s anything we could do together… Like going to a restaurant or maybe a date… Something besides sex, girls like you need other kinds of love too!”

Worried, Smija asks… “D-Do you not enjoy the way I treat you? Th-The way we reach oneness through lovely bonding…”

“N-No! I-I mean, yes I do like the way you treat and pamper me! It’s just that… W-Well you mentioned our lack of dates and it feels that the only activities we do together are… Sexually focused” You say, continuing after a short pause “We should also be doing lovey-dovey things such as going out, holding hands in public, walking around the park… Have a little time for us both!”

Smija lovingly fawns “Oh, Sweetie, how thoughtful you are!~” Adding “But in truth… I am still unsure what kind of activities a date would entail… I suppose having fun while spending a beautiful moment together could classify as a date, correct? An example of it would be our little escapade in the Ferric Gates! I had much fun and we spent a beautiful time together despite all the setbacks my bad fortunes brought upon you… But… I suppose doing groceries with you could also be considered a date; because I would be thoroughly enjoying a beautiful time in your company… Every moment spent with you can be considered beautiful” She sighs with a placid smile, continuing “I must admit the concept of dating is still a bit foreign to me… Our culture dictates that bonding through lovely intercourse must be performed each time an Apophis is in the presence of her beloved man; though it must be done away from plain view and in a private location… Thus I… W-Well, I do what my values and instincts tell me…” Smija blushes before pausing for a moment, continuing thereafter “I was just curious about your take on our relationship, your sudden proposition and the courtship rituals humans often perform… Since humans tend to have a number of ‘meetings’ before declaring love and performing consensual intercourse… I thought my sudden moves were making you feel awkward and uncomfortable…” And after a pause, she cutely chuckles “In the end it was just me being a silly mess of nervousness!”

Lovingly staring into your eyes, Smija adds “Y-You don’t have to take me on dates if that is what you are worried about! I thoroughly enjoy being in your company however trivial the situation might appear to be; I treasure every moment we spend together, Sweetie.” She cups a hand on your cheek and continues “And if you worry about it, then think of it the way I do: A date entails beautiful moments spent together, either in a bath, in a dining room or casually walking down a hallway!” Smija then warmly smiles and says in reassurance “Sweetie, by now you must’ve noticed that I do not ask much from you… No expensive dinners, entertainment, trinkets or mundane objects… All I want is your love and I know that right now -and in the long and fruitful future we are going to spend together- you and I are going to give absurd quantities of love to one another! So please, don’t worry much about it…”

>>231050

Yet again pausing for a moment, Smija briefly avoids eye contanct, saying “And w-well… If you do insist… I would not mind keeping you company on your next errand or short adventure… Lady Oracle said she will be around for a long time and she will always be available for you and me, so if I’m feeling a bit lonely and perhaps hectic because my Sweetie is away, it would be fine if I decided to take a break in order to spend some time with him… S-So…” She takes a deep breath, continuing “So… I have decided to follow you around and assist you in any way I can! A-As your wife--- F-Future wife! Y-Yes, future wife, I have to learn more about your trade… And perhaps feel a bit more relieved to know that you will be safer under my watchful eye… A-And that you will not do reckless things which could put your life at stake…”

Then, Smija cups both hands on your cheeks, a bit worried she says “Sweetie, I do not want to be a widow. In fact -and please forgive my insolence and selfishness- I would like to die before you do…” A look of sadness invades her beautiful face, as her eyes begin to well; Smija adds “I know what widowship entails… In fact, I have seen the effects it brings upon an unfortunate wife… All the sadness and pain… The loneliness… The longing… That is something I would never like to experience. P-Please forgive my selfishness, b-but if one day one of us has to move towards the next life, I shall be the one to leave first…” Smija curves her lips downwards as tears begin to roll down her cheeks “B-Because I know you are strong and you would never give up… N-Never… E-Ever… I-I’m s-sorry f-for abandoning you… B-But r-remember that I will always l-love no matter what…”

Surprised by Smija’s sudden change of mood --as well by the darker turn this conversation took- you pull her for a hug, in reassurance you exclaim “Smija don’t say such things! We still have a long road ahead of us! Now’s not the time to be thinking about such dark topics..”

“S-Sorry I-I made myself all sad for nothing…” Smija says with a somewhat comical sad pout, adding with a squeaky voice shortly afterwards “P-Please embrace me… I-I need it right now…”

It is somewhat amusing the way Smija can change her mood all of a sudden; but perhaps her fears are justified; often times a dangerous profession such as yours requires drastic --and at times, reckless- actions to be taken. For a few minutes you console Smija until she finally calms herself down… And yet again with beaming eyes she looks at you, somewhat expectantly, unsure what your next move is going to be…

>>231051

“I guess the demon I brought should be the next serious issue to be taken care of…” You thoughtfully scratch your chin before continuing “I mean, it IS a live demon and I gotta deal with it somehow…” Shrugging afterwards “After that, I guess I should deal with the books I snatched and then a quick resupply before moving onto other matters…”

“A-A demon!?” Smija exclaims in horror “S-Sweetie what on mundus did you do inside that old library!?” Thus begins a short recount of your adventures: The old haunted library, the demon keeping a bunch of souls --with yours included- captive, the way your party beat it up and… The troublesome trip back, with the ghouls and fun explosions.

“Aww Sweetie, I wish I would’ve been there to protect you!…” Smija clasps and holds your hands together; looking to the side, she frowns, adding: “And to teach that nasty demon a lesson… Nobody tampers with my Sweetie’s soul! That is horrible! And keeping innocent people imprisoned and suffering! As… As her slaves” Her frown deepens as a strange hazy substance begins to flow out of her eyes and mouth… Smija’s sudden change of mood makes you feel very uneasy “It makes me very upset… But what makes me very angry is the fact that she enslaved you!” Suddenly, as Smija’s breathing turns strained and her angry frown deepens even further, the whole room darkens and small pitch-black particles begin to float through the air; her dark aura makes you nauseated, as well as causing your whole body to ache in pain…

As Smija’s grip tightens, so does the aura she extrudes: You now feel every inch of your body being crushed from all directions by an unseen force. After a moment of struggling, you finally manage to let out a weak groan… Smija takes notice and her aura immediately recedes, turning the surroundings back to normal “S-Sorry sorrysorrysorry! S-Sweetie are you hurt?! D-Did I harm you?!“ Smija worriedly exclaims, shaking your body several times.

After taking a deep breath and slowly shaking your head side to side, you let out a soft chuckle; smiling, you plant a kiss over Smija’s forehead, letting her know that you are unharmed. In shame, Smija briefly avoids eye contact, saying “I have little control whenever I’m angry… L-Lady Oracle had to deal with my aura as well… Thankfully she was able to reason with me in time… A-Are you sure I did not harm you?”

After a few more reassuring headpats, you smile and say: “Actually, the demon didn’t enslave me… I was able to keep my mind under control! So… In a way, you saved me! You saved Regula, Cornelius, Delwen, Inzi and me! Thanks to you I was able to break free from her control!” And after yet another smooch, you embrace Smija, adding “You made me stronger with those venom resistance sessions… Ohhh, where would I be without you?… Despite whatever you might think, you are a very important member of my party! After all… You’ve made me stronger, both mentally and physically…”

“I-If you s-say so… I am glad to be useful… Especially to you…” Smija blushes profusely, on that very moment you could feel her confidence growing a bit… She then proceeds to melt in your arms, letting out content sighs as she placidly snuggles against your body. You simply respond with a small peck over her lips and an ‘I love you too’.

>>231052

Upon getting out of bed, and after dressing up, you head out to check on Delwen’s bedroom. Smija slithers right next to you, tightly holding your hand whilst humming placid song. After knocking on the old door, Delwen responds very groggily “Come in…”

Poor Delwen looks like a mess: Bags under her eyes, disheveled auburn hair and wrinkled wings; she also wears a cutesy nightgown made of green leaves. After closing the door behind, the now tiny Delwen sits over the bed’s edge. Loudly yawning, she says thereafter “My body hurts all over…” And after stretching her arms and legs, Delwen adds “A-Are you here to take me on another adventure? I’m afraid I won’t be able to join you for a little while…” Sleepily yawning, Delwen continues “Y-You see, my body is tiny and frail, and Lady Oracle’s magic doesn’t work too well on me. Us Fae are special little snowflakes, so special, our bodies work in different ways compared to more mundane living beings such as humans and the like; conventional magic doesn’t work too well on us no matter how experienced the healer might be… L-Lady Oracle tried her best to heal my sore muscles, but you need special Fae magic to heal… Well… The Fae!”

Then, a bit preoccupied, Delwen reaches for her bag purse, turning both herself and the purse to a bigger size “Oh well, I suppose I could lend you my purse… Bag-thing, but…” After getting closer to you, Delwen adds “Laylah might give you a tiny wee bit of trouble… I told you she was very moody and unruly at times; we’ve been friends for almost two-hundred years so I know her pretty well! But… If I gave you this bag, Laylah wouldn’t really like it much!~ I-I don’t want her to get mad at me! So…” Her attention suddenly turns towards Smija… Delwen begins to thoughtfully scratch her chin, she proceeds to grab one of Smija’s breasts right afterward, murmuring “Mmm…. MMMM!!”

“D-Delwen wh-what are you doing?!” Smija loudly whispers, surprised by Delwen’s endeavors; suffice to say she is now blushing profusely, looking at you in shame…

“You are taking Smija on your next exploit, right? Because Inzi’s still sleeping and Miss Oracle is having a hard time with Maja’s lessons… So I’d assume Smija’s the one who will make sure you don’t recklessly kill yourself!” You silently nod in response, surprised by both Delwen’s reasoning and bluntness… “I just got an idea!~” Delwen exclaims whilst groping Smija’s chest with both hands “Your boobies are fairly big… And squishy… And soft… And have a very nice shape too!~” She then adds after resting her head over Smija’s bosoms “You see, female Djinn have a certain ‘code of honor’… W-Well that’s what Laylah has told me anyway, basically any lady can assert superiority over them… As long as her boobies are bigger!” Then, with her little hands, Delwen begins to knead Smija’s breasts “Ohohoho yes!~ Laylah respects me as a friend, but you Smija, she will respect you for your superior bust size!”

“B-But I don’t like to flaunt about my breast size… Especially on those who don’t happen to be as gifted as I am…” Smija sheepishly interjects, awkwardly pushing Delwen’s hands away from her breasts.

“Nahh, don’t worry, Laylah’s boobies are fairly big themselves and in no way is she flat! But yours…” Delwen admires Smija’s boobies from up close “Ohhh, yours are bigger!~ Even though they’re tightly packed within a breastband, yours are superior to Laylah’s!” Afterwards, Delwen steps back, reaching for her bag “So yes, I do believe you will be able to assert superiority over her. As I said, she’s a bit unruly and as Otho here belongs to you, she has no interest in him whatsoever! So… I’d really advise against giving this purse to Otho; So here it is!~ You may take it Smija---” Delwen gives the purse to Smija, quickly retracting her arms; In pain, she exclaims “Owwowow owie! My arms! I-I should’ve brought more medicinal herbs from home!”

>>231054

And so, after Smija obtains the magical bag, Delwen then peeks inside; motioning both of you to follow. The strange insides of the seemingly endless bag remain the same as a few days ago: With an odd bluish haze obscuring the horizon and lots of junk scattered all over the place. From the mouth of the bag, you can spy all the stuff you had looted from the library, neatly arranged near a stack of barrels.

“Oh Laylah!~ You’ve got visitors!~” Delwen exclaims, her voice echoing all over.

Suddenly, Laylah materializes out of nowhere “Hi Delwen!” She friendlily waves at her, then turning her attention to you and with a less than friendly tone she says: “… And hello, Mr. Already-taken… What brings you he---”

Smija then peeks into the bag -her face right next to yours- suddenly interrupting the Djinni in mid-sentence “G-Greetings! M-My name is Smija… A-And… I’m Otho’s bride-to-be… A-And… Umm…” After stammering, Smija gingerly asks “I-I was wondering if… U-Ummm… I could borrow your bag for a moment… S-Since Delwen does not feel well… A-And… W-Well I… W-Would you mind i-if we brought your bag along?”

As the Djinn glares at Smija, Delwen pushes her inside: Thanks to her snake half, Smija now hangs from the bag’s mouth; her breasts lightly bouncing as she tries to keep balance. Upon gazing at Smija’s luscious bust, Laylah freezes right in place… She looks somewhat stupefied, perhaps already acknowledging Smija’s superior bosoms.

“Cross your arms under your boobies! Puff your chest!” Delwen exclaims with a low tone; Smija soon complies… Her bust now appears to be twice as big.

“Very well… I submit…” Laylah groans in defeat, throwing glances at both her breasts --which are somewhat big- and Smija’s. “Such grandiose breasts… I would be honored to momentarily serve you. Though I will grant you no wishes! I am saving those for my future husband! Yes, my future husband who will be back at any moment! He’s so big… And strong and tall…” Smirking, the Djinn points at you “A-And cuter than him! YESSSS, he’s a superior man in every way! He is---”

“He’s a picture you’ve got saved on your crystal ball!~” Delwen playfully exclaims, interrupting Laylah.

“H-He’s real and he loves me! O-One day he will be real! I-I just have to find another Djinni and wish for him to become real!” Laylah pouts, afterwards disappearing in a cloud of blue smoke.

>>231055

Without further ado, you now move onto the next task: Checking on Inzi; Delwen tags along, sitting over your shoulder; perhaps she is curious about the schedule you had planned for today… Upon reaching Inzi’s room, even from outside you could hear her really loud snores; she sounds like a sleeping dragon, occasionally growling and roaring. Not wanting to incur her wrath, you promptly leave the premises before any accidents happen… Such as accidentally seeing her naked body once again, or worse, waking her up.

Walking back to the main hall, you casually come across Miss Oracle who leisurely floated around; it appears she is looking for something. Oracle suddenly takes notice of your presence and like a bullet she comes right at you “Good morrow mine children!” She exclaims, Oracle then proceeds to give you a hug, planting a skeletal kiss over your forehead whilst stroking your hair several times “And welcome back, Othonios; I had missed thee! Thou naughty, devious child; getting in trouble and making Smija and I deathly afraid for thine wellbeing!” Cupping one hand on your cheek, she adds “I am nevertheless very glad thou art in one piece… Thou also took good care of thine party, saved countless innocent souls from the evil maws of a demon… And thou protected the womanly integrity of Inzi…” Then, Oracle starts to sob… “As thine self-proclaimed guardian and mentor, I am very proud of thee… I-In fact I am now shedding tears! Th-Thou cannot see it, b-but I truly am…” With her skeletal hand she tries to wipe some of her tears… But her skull remains as dry as ever.

After giving her a few pats on the back, you say while still being enveloped by her bony arms “I’m glad to see you too… Kinda odd you didn’t come to see me in my dreams…”

“Oh, I did not want to wake thee up… Nor did I want to interrupt thine bonding with Smija! Love has the power to heal a restless body, so I delegated mine restorative tasks to Smija!” Oracle responds with a haughty chuckle, separating from the hug shortly afterwards. Her words made Smija blush profusely, and somewhat ashamed, Smija holds onto your hand, shyly avoiding eye contact with Lady Oracle “Well, ‘tis no secret thou love each other very much… I do not see a reason to be ashamed of it! In fact, thine behavior should serve as a lesson for any prospective fiancées-to-be!” Oracle exclaims whilst stroking Smija’s hair. She then adds “Such as Maja, she could use thee as a role model! Despite what thou might think, she doth really appreciate thee… In her own special way of course…” Oracle briefly pauses, adding thereafter “Speaking of which, where is that naughty girl? Today I shall teach her about niceness; thou cannot infatuate a man without being nice to him! Is that not right dear Smija? Ohoho! of course it is!” And after pausing for yet another moment, Oracle adds “But I assume thou art here for reasons other than mine lessons…”

Immediately, Oracle’s body begins to glow with a golden hue… She says sternly “Now that I think of it, I do feel an odd aura nearby. ‘Tis dark and quite different from Smija or Maja… And it comes… From Smija? No, Delwen’s bag!” And so, you tell her about the bag’s contents: Mainly the demon and its idol… Oracle then exclaims “Mine goodness Othonios, thou brought the demon along?! Cornelius did not inform me about this!”

>>231056

“I thought setting it free would be highly irresponsible of me… So I did the most sensible thing I could think of: Bringing it to you. Since you’re an Oracle I suppose you could deal with the demon yourself or at least give us some insight about a way of dealing with it…” You casually shrug.

“I am flattered… Oh, Othonios, thank you for depositing thine trust on me, ‘tis very flattering!” Oracle says; you could see a faint skeletal smile on her expressionless skull… She later adds: “But enough talk! We need to find a way to incapacitate the demon! Quickly!” As Smija peeks her head inside Delwen’s bag purse in order to reach for YOUR bag, Oracle asks “Dost thou know the demon’s name? This is very important!”

“Agitru… Nam… Uhh… Agarte…” You respond, unsure of her name… It is pretty difficult to pronounce after all.

“Agirtunamadu” Delwen responds, somewhat worried.

“Mmmhhh” Lady Oracle thoughtfully scratches her chin “’Adu… Nam’adu… Agirtu… Nam… The Legion’s Hirer? The Female Legate? The Mistress of the Legion? The Mistress of many…” After a short pause and in deep thought, she adds “Mine Akkud is very rusty, but methinks this is what her name means: The Mistress of many… Thou see, Othonios, for a demon to possess such name… It means she commands a big quantity of subjects, which I presume would not like her ‘Mistress’ being held captive by a ragtag band of vagrants.”

“I also recall she talked about being the bane of some tribe… Shebeqatreq or something…” Delwen says.

“Which means she probably slaughtered them and absorbed their souls… Employing them to obtain power…” Yet again Oracle scratches her chin, continuing later “Tell me, what exactly didst thou do in order to make her thine prisoner?” Thus begins a short recount of way you beat the shit outta Agirtunamadu… Blasting her face off with your blunderbuss and breaking the strange cocoon she formed after being so easily defeated.

“Great! By breaking the protective shell thou momentarily halted her regeneration… And with Delwen’s weakening magic, thou completely negated the threat she posed!” Oracle exclaims. By now, Smija finally pulled your bag out and thus, you begin to rummage its insides for both the imprisoned demon and her idol; Agirtunamadu is still fast asleep, weakened by Delwen’s magic…

After swiftly handing both items to Oracle, she says “With this unsavory idol we can seal her soul, efficiently getting rid of her manifested body; the idol itself will become nigh-indestructible, ensuring her safe containment,” Pausing for a moment, she adds “The only downside is that by doing so, the demon will be able to fully recover its powers… However, it will not be able to break free unless someone is foolish enough to break the seal… Afterwards, we could decide the idol’s fate; right now, sealing the demon is paramount!” After Oracle carefully examines the sleeping demon, she says “And as for the demon… This one appears to be a Baphomet, a sabbatic goat-demon mainly worshipped by cultist witches and a handful of Ur-Shemath tribes… I could elaborate on their powers and positions within the demonic circles for hours on end, but I shall spare thee all from mine ramblings; besides, we must make haste and seal this demon at once before it decides to break free!”

"I… Uh…" You say, "Don't you think we should talk to her first or something?"

"Nonsense!" Oracle exclaims "Did the demon 'talk' with thee before trying to enslave thine soul? I do not think so… 'Tis very upsetting when a loved one suddenly gets turned into the plaything of some demon! Methinks we should not be lenient with it! Especially not with a demon of this kind, fond of toying with the souls of mortals… Preposterous!" Oracle does make a fair point after all…

>>231057

Thus, Oracle guides you into an unoccupied room… After asking for a writing charcoal, she begins to draw several circles on the floor filled with complex patterns and geometrical shapes such as crosses, as well as both runic and classical Helleromani inscriptions; suffice to say, Oracle will be performing a ritual of some sort… When finally done, the places both the idol and the bottle -where Agirtunamadu is imprisoned- inside the circle, far apart from one another and right in the middle of smaller circular patterns inscribed in ancient languages.

“P-Please do not do this…” Agirtunamadu suddenly opens her eyes, has she been faking her sleep? “Th-This one does not want to go back to the cage!” On her knees, she pleads with heart-wrenching puppy eyes.

“Like we art foolish enough to fall for thine trickery!” Oracle exclaims and after grabbing her crucifix necklace, a golden aura begins to glow around her body as she yells “VADE RETRO DÆMONIUM!”

“Eeekk!” Agirtunamadu covers her face, frightfully stammering “I-I do not fear you… B-But I do fear Smija… Th-This one could not sense it from the memories of Othonios Constantinos…” She then turns her attention towards Smija “But now that we are up close… I-I can clearly see what you are… M-Marilith… A living conduit for---”

“N-No no nono! Do not say that word!” Smija forcefully slaps her tail on the floor, angrily frowning as her eyes yet again begin to seethe with black haze “If you even dare moving a single muscle, I swear I will tear you apart and send you back to whatever fiendish pit you came from! Treating my Sweetie as you own plaything… As… As your slave! Keeping all those innocent souls captive!” Smija does appear to be very angry; you decide to lay a hand over her shoulder before she loses control of herself… Efficiently calming her down a bit. She can be very intimidating if needed be….

“Th-This one would like t-to m-make a deal…” The demon says as Oracle places her hands right above the magical circles “I-I swear th-this one will not betray y-you… N-Not in the presence of a Marili---”

“I will get very angry if you say that word again!” Smija threateningly hisses with teeth clenched… Yet again you are prompted to calm her down, informing that the demon is just seeking to provoke her.

As the magical circle starts to glow, Agirtunamadu trembles in fear “N-Not b-betraying… N-No betrayal… P-Please… I-I possess crucial information… Th-This one could help you out!”

“And dost thou think WE believe THEE?! HA! Foolish! Didst thou not fear me a few moments ago?” The demon’s breathing turns strained as she starts to shake her head in negation “Then thou should be! FOR WE WILL CAST THEE INTO THE CLEANSING LIGHTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS!”

“W-Wait wait p-please no! I-I do have crucial information! Y-Yes! O-Othonios is in great danger!” Yet again Agirtunamadu exclaims, visibly terrified and covered in sweat.

“Smija dear, please step back; mine magic might hurt thee as well.” Oracle adds as she makes the circles glow brighter…

Agirtunamadu desperately exclaims “H-He is currently being hunted down! A-And this one knows who it is! In D-Drywater h-he got himself in big trouble! M-Making many people angry! P-Powerful people!” Then, Miss Oracle lays her hands over the glowing circle and begins to recite ancient chants… This prompts Agirtunamadu to screech in fear “Eeeekkk! P-Please! D-Do not send this one back! Th-This one swears on her Daddy that she will not lie! P-Please! A-All I ask i-is not to be sent back i-into the doll!” Then, with tears in her eyes, the demon pleads “P-Please Othonios… Th-This one is sorry for attempting to enslave and consume your soul… B-But I cannot help it! Th-This one cannot help but to follow her instincts and true nature…”

>What do you do?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>231058

Lets hear the demon out, and have her swear herself in servitude to our merry band of adventurers.

>>231128

>>231271

Seconding this, our grapesnek needs subjects of her own, shes royalty after all.

Also I propose Smija does all the haggling when we actually get to sell the phat loot, since she can be very intimidating at times maybe we could squeeze a few shekels more if she uses her royal snek charms to make totallynotrickharrison soil his toga give in and pay more for our fine items. that'll help Smija boost her confidence too so we'll be killing two birds with one stone.

After selling and restocking ammunitions head back and distribute the gifts we brought, then read the book on necromancy for clues.

>>232161

self confidence* I mean

>>231058

“Hold up!” You exclaim whilst taking a few steps forward “We should hear it out at least… Even if we already know the inquisition wants my head.”

“The inquisition what?!” Smija shouts in horror.

“You know, how Oracle and I kinda pissed off some corrupt dudes in Drywater… Anyways, let’s hear the demon out, if she tries something funny, both of you can smite it all you want!” You casually shrug.

Which prompts Oracle to turn her head backwards, her expressionless face showing disdain “Dost thou honestly believe what this creature just spewed? It is desperate, cornered! This depraved creature only seeks to make a fool of thee!” Turning her head back again, Oracle starts to glow “And I, as an Oracle, will not allow these transgressions to remain unpunished!”

“And I never mentioned anything about forgiveness! In fact, I know a way to punish her…” You grin maliciously, chuckling “One which could greatly benefit us all!” After a deep sigh, Oracle’s glowing aura subsides. After commanding for Agirtunamadu’s release from her glass prison, Delwen quickly removes the waxen seal, freeing the demon as well as turning her back to normal size.

Oracle then restrains the demon, using a manner of holy magic you have never seen before: Binds of pure light tightly constrict Agirtunamadu’s body. “Thou heard him; now off with thine risible farce, speak truly or be smitten back into the hellish depths of oblivion!” Oracle commands with much hostility as the wavering flames in her eyesockets grow in size.

>>232563

“A-As this one said, Othonios Constantinos is in great danger! Y-Yes, great danger!” The demon stammers before regaining her composure “Th-This one remembers hearing about a powerful demon who posed as the Oracle of Drywater. Her plans foiled after a very dear pawn of hers was incarcerated by a human religious order, rumor has it a rookie adventurer might have played a part in it…” She then puts on a serious face, continuing with a stern tone “N-Naturally, this one paid no attention to idle underworld and demonic gossip… Until… Until this one rifled through the mind of Othonios…” Immediately, Smija angrily frowns, threateningly glaring at the bound demon. Agirtunamadu continues “P-Please do not harm me! N-Never once this one thought about the consequences of her actions!”

Later, after calming herself from an apparent attack of anxiety, she continues “S-So it all became evident; the man who fell right into this one’s trap was none other than the rookie adventurer who had angered so much people…” Agirtunamadu looks into your eyes “The skeletal figure following him around; his transgressions against an inquisitor; The Ur-Shemathim and the Salamander mercenary sent to capture him! His last sighting was at the town of Nusquam in Northern Dexteria… Two ambush parties were sent after him, one of which got totally annihilated; it was said they were Ur-Shemath insurgents posing as Septentrian legionary personnel, their bodies were found charred and torn apart… The other one was a skilled Salamander Mercenary of a somewhat ill reputation; known for her impertinence and her tendency of quitting jobs if she did not deem them ‘thrilling’ enough.”

Agirtunamadu continues “It was you after all… This one did not hear much after Othonios obtained access to the Ferric Gates… It appears your assailants lost track of your location… O-Or perhaps they have not! This one had stopped listening to the gossip…” Them the demon worriedly adds “In truth, I have to remain hidden… The knowledge I possess could certainly get me in very much trouble! This one is now weak, denied of her nourishment… And now that Othonio’s memories are also mine, it means this one is no longer safe!”

“YOU STOLE MY SWEETIE’S MEMORIES TOO?!” Smija angrily exclaims as yet again she extrudes a dark, nauseating aura. You hold her hand as to calm her down a bit…

“I-It was not this one’s intention! Th-This one thought Othonios was actually his father, who for some reason had returned to the library! I-I had to have his soul for my collection!”

But your efforts are proven futile as Smija’s aura thickens, obscuring the whole room “YOU ALSO PLANNED ON ENSLAVING MY SWEETIE’S FATHER?! MY FATHER-IN-LAW?!”

“Eeek!! P-Please understand! Th-This one could not help it!” The demon nervously blurts “I had planned on keeping Othonios for myself… Use him as leverage to obtain power from his assailants” Smija’s breathing quickens as black haze begins to pour from her eyes, ears, nose and mouth; suffice to say you hold her hand ever tighter as Agirtunamadu continues “B-But he brought this one’s downfall a-and now this one is weak and frail… The tables turned after I was utterly defeated by the prowess of Othonios and company.”

“P-Please this one begs of you, Great Othonios Constantinos, son of Xanthippos Constantinos, adventurer and mercenary extraordinaire, p-please spare me. Do not imprison me… D-Do not send me back into the abyssal pits where I would no longer be safe… This one swears she will never bother you again… Y-You will never see me again.” Agirtunamadu pleads in tears.

>>232564

“There will be no forgiveness…” You respond, yet again taking a few steps forward. Whilst grinning, you add “Now, I can tell Oracle to send your flat ass back into that idol of yours, but… I think a more profitable way of punishing you is to swear PERMANENT and UNBETRAYING contracted servitude to Smija, as recompense for your earlier misdeeds!”

“Wh-What?! Othonios art thou mad?!” Oracle yells.

“I can’t wait to tell Inzi about this!~” Delwen cutely giggles, it appears she finds this whole ordeal to be amusing.

“S-Sweetie! B-But why me?!” Smija exclaims in surprise, her noxious aura completely receding.

“Well, you’re royalty! You need subjects of your own… This demon swears herself in servitude of our merry band of adventurers and everyone’s happy! Except for the demon…”

“B-But… B-But I don’t want any slaves…” Smija says with preoccupation.

“Well, technically speaking she will not be a slave; it’ll be punishment for her misdeeds! Maybe you could teach her a lesson or two about niceness… Can you believe she tried to fool me using a mirage of your beautiful self?” Smija’s frowns as you continue… “She gouged your eyes out… Made me think you were in suffering… And almost made me believe that you were also trapped in her twisted dimension” You shudder at the memories; they had certainly left a mark on you, “I… I can’t really erase those images form my head… The way she corrupted you into something horrible… It was as if all seven vices had taken over your body…” Smija’s breathing quickens as her aura extends once more, you then add “And the way she made me see you suffer… Y-You writhed in pain, I wanted to help you! And I almost fell for it were it not for Cornelius’ help…”

>>232565

Suddenly, the whole room darkens; ripples of dark energy start floating throughout the place “H-How dare you!” Smija exclaims, once more her eyes begin to seethe with dark haze… As her rage grows and festers, her hair turns into numerous pitch black tendrils that endlessly wave and squirm about. “HOW DARE YOU?!” Smija yells again, this time in pure rage, constricting Agirtunamadu with her snake lower half; the demon’s face turns blue as she fearfully watches Smija’s onslaught. With grinned teeth, Smija adds in the very same distorted voice you heard after defeating Maja, “Toying with my Sweetie’s mind!… Making him suffer!…” Then, her eyes burst into dark flames as she flails the demon about, slamming her against the floor several times; Smija angrily mutters afterwards “Y-You… You…” With utmost rage, Smija pulls the demon closer to her face, angrily yelling as the dark flames in her eyes grow ever bigger “YOU WRETCHED MONSTER!”

The noxious aura had already debilitated everyone in the room, yourself included. Trying to resist the severe headache and overall bodily pain induced by her dark powers, you weakly crawl across the floor to where Smija stands… Once reaching for her hand, Smija looks at you in shame, causing her aura to immediately recede. Her eyes in tears and lips pushed out in sadness, Smija quickly throws herself over you for a hug, carelessly dropping the badly-beaten demon on the floor… Reassuring headpats and smooches soon ensue.

Despite her dangerous dark magic and great physical capabilities, your snake bride is a very vulnerable person; it is endearing to know how someone so powerful can be so vulnerable and dependent at the same time… Dependent of your love, affection and tender care; something you have sworn to provide after proposing to take her hand in marriage. You watch as Smija softly sobs in your arms, desperately clinging onto you… After all, your suffering deeply affects her, perhaps much more than it does to you…

>>232566

As minutes pass, Smija regains her composure once more… And albeit she is still a little mad at the demon, in deep shame she apologizes for her lack of self-control.

“I… This one is wordless…” Agirtunamadu says, “P-Please do not harm me any further… This one knows she deserves every lashing and scourging… B-But this one is not very fond of feeling acute pain.”

Back on your feet, you gaze down at the demon, sternly saying “So… Pledge allegiance or be smitten back to tartarus where you belong.”

“I am nothing but a lowly demon, fallen from grace and into obscurity. Not worshipped by any tribes, forgotten by her cultists… And worse enough, no sacrifices are ever made in my name…” Agirtunamadu sighs in defeat… She then kneels before Smija, bowing her head in respect “This one swears to abide by your command, Mistress Smija.”

Then, somewhat awkwardly, Smija looks at you… She appears to be a tad worried… After taking a deep breath and momentarily closing her eyes, she gazes down at the demon, saying “You will henceforth address me as Lady Smija, not Mistress…” For a brief moment she pauses, adding thereafter “However, you shall address Othonios as your master, as well as with all the people we hold dear, they are your masters now… You shall also treat us all with utmost respect and hold us in the highest regard.”

Later, Smija asks for Agirtunamadu’s wrist… After sinking her fangs on it, drops of teal-colored blood begin to flow out the wound… Smija then pinches the tip of her index finger with one of her sharp fangs, letting out a small drop of blood. Pressing her bloodied finger against the demon’s wounded wrist, Smija recites several words in her native tongue. When done, she adds: “As Apophis venom has no effect over creatures foreign to our plane of existence, we are now bound by blood…” then, with a very stern expression on her face, Smija continues “As it is customary, you are now a subordinate of the Aneb clan… Every decision you take and every action you perform shall be done to our benefit. You will be smitten if we ever find you working against our interests, you have been warned.” Agirtunamadu nods once, a look of uncertainty invades her childlike face.

>>232567

“Now, A-Agir… A-Agirti… S-Sorry, wh-what was your name again?” Smija asks, back to her stammering usual self.

“Agirtu-Nam’adu, The Mistress of Many, The Legion’s Hirer.” She responds with pride… Strangely enough all the bruises on her face had already disappeared.

“Y-Yes, Agirtu-Nam’adu… My Sweetie will now ask you several questions… Isn’t that right, my love?” Smija holds onto your hand, then staring deeply into your eyes she adds “I’m deeply worried about these people who want to take you away… Perhaps you can get a bit more information from her…”

“This one shall help you in any way she can… Ask, my master, and this one shall respond with utmost sincerity.” Agirtunamadu stands right before you; Oracle’s hands begin to glow with a golden hue, preemptively preparing a spell in case the demon tries any underhanded tactics.

>What do you do now?

---———————

>Inventory:

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells:

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions:

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>232568

ask her what she is capable of combat wise, and for any information who this powerful demon is

we should also ask oracle about more binding measures for the demon and make absolutely sure she can't betray us

fuck, forgot my sage

>>232568

Go get the book on Rudiments of the dead and see where you have to go next, we gotta skip town or else we'll get caught by that inquisition we dealt with last time.

>>232568

Have her tell us about the demon.

Does it wear a mask? If so, why?

If we pulled this mask off, would it be smitten?

>>232568

Ask the demon how dangerous the demon posing as an oracle is, and what she intends to do as oracle

Update mañana :---DDDD

>>233882

>>234387

Yeah I'm afraid update's gonna be tomorrow… It's almost 3am and I can barely proofread, let alone keep my eyes open.

>>234403

> It's almost 3am and I can barely proofread, let alone keep my eyes open.

fug, barely keep my eyes open, let alone proofread.

I think it really is time 4 beddo nao.

>>232568

“Tell me about the demon! Why does it wear the mask?” You inquire with a loud and obnoxious tone.

“In order to conceal her identity, she occasionally wears masks; while not a shapeshifter the demon in question is, she can make her horns, tail and wings recede… That is, according to the information this one has gathered…” Agirtunamadu awkwardly responds.

“If we pulled that off would she be smitten?” Yet again you inquire, this time staring at Agirtunamadu’s goat-like eyes as you take one step closer.

“It would be extremely embarrassing! For her!” The demon answers, the awkwardness of your questions have made her a bit tense; she then continues: “Very leery of others she is, plus taking in consideration that the master saw her dressed as the Oracle of Drywater’s temple makes this one believe she already had some sort of interest in him! I-In fact, thanks to your memories this one was able to catch a glimpse of her appearance…” She nervously leans away before continuing “B-But just a glimpse… This one believes she tampered with the master’s mind, causing him to forget the way she looked…”

“Come to think of it, I don’t really remember her looks…” You pause for a moment, thoughtfully scratching your chin… Considering you saw her naked body, you cannot recall any specific details; perhaps it is for the best.

“I do…” Oracle suddenly interjects, “Red eyes, skin as fair as milk and shiny silver hair; a voluptuous body of enviable proportions… On her head, black horns which curved frontwards… On her rear was a thick gray tail ending in a spade-shaped appendage…” She pauses for a moment before continuing “As I recall, the ‘Bishop’ she was ‘playing’ with had called her ‘Sheziel’; however hard I try, I cannot pinpoint the meaning of said name… Which is crucial in understanding her demonic nature… Her name is not Ancient Akkudi -that is for certain- but neither doth it sound like Nabaqhteshi or Aegypticus… I would assume ‘tis Poenici or even from a long-lost civilization; languages I certainly cannot comprehend.”

“An astute assumption my Mistress!” Agirtunamadu praises at Oracle’s deductive skills “But a pseudonym this one believes it to be; ‘Sheziel’ has a very secretive and intriguing nature.”

>>234563

“So, how dangerous is this demon and what does she intend to do as an Oracle?” You inquire once more.

“No idea, my master…” Agirtunamadu’s shoulders hang low “This one has heard gossips here and there, but nothing is concrete enough to make for any fair assumptions. One thing is for sure, the new temple sect this Sheziel’ character has infiltrated and certainly influential she is! Enough to make the clergy believe she is a holy person!” Then, scratching her chin, she continues “And as for her motives… Again, this one is without a clue! Ever since the death of the Goddess Ishliar there---”

All of a sudden, Oracle angrily interjects whilst threateningly waving her finger “I beg thine pardon, the death of our beloved Goddess?! PREPOSTEROUS! SLANDEROUS BLASPHEMY!”

“This one is just stating the facts; the whole world has been in turmoil ever since Ishliar abandoned humanity!” Agirtunamadu casually shrugs “Septentria should be enough evidence; this whole province used to be a wasteland, but never was it haunted by freely-roaming undead and noxious magical clouds… Mistress Oracle clearly remembers, correct? Back when she walked as a living being, a much different place Septentria was… At least that is what she told Master Othonios. The death or disappearance of Ishliar has thrown mundus in complete disarray!”

“Yes, Septentria used to be much different during mine times…” Oracle responds, floating closer to the demon “Even still, mine magical abilities --which were granted by her holy grace as it is custom with every Oracle- as well as the voice I hath heard upon mine awakening are linked to the Goddess Illiania herself!” She then accusatively points a finger at Agirtunamadu, exclaiming “The death of our beloved Goddess is a villainous blasphemy! I suggest thou never bring it up again lest thou seek to be smitten, demon; thou hast been warned!” And after floating a few steps back, Oracle crosses her arms, adding “Also, calling the Goddess by her Ur-Shemath name is heresy, do not do that again.”

“Although her death has not been confirmed by any sources, at least in the underworld a very well-known secret it is…” Agirtunamadu casually shrugs once more, continuing thereafter “Be that as it may, there is nothing you mortals can do about it; the beginning of a new era is nigh, for better or worse… And this one thinks Master Othonios has more urgent matters to worry about: Such as this ‘Sheziel’ character going right after him.” Then, she maliciously chuckles “This one can hardly believe the way Master Othonios carelessly pranced about with very little regard for his own safety! Was he not aware he was being hunted down? Mistress Inzi is proof enough!”

And after deeply sighing, Agirtunamadu continues “In any case, this one suggests Master Othonios to tread with caution. Even though Sheziel is technically the Oracle of Drywater --as her power restricted to the fringe area of Dexteria should be- nothing this one knows about the influence Sheziel actually holds over the institution itself; after all, the inquisition was sent to capture Master Othonios, so this one would assume Sheziel’s influence allows her to summon the might those militaristic monastic orders…” She pauses for a moment before continuing “But let us not forget that your Bishop friend was incarcerated by a monastic order as well! Perhaps no real control Sheziel has over them? Perhaps the chain of command in the ‘Nova Ecclesia’ –the new temple- is fragmented? This one does not know for sure…”

>>234564

“Do you actually know who ‘Sheziel’ is? How powerful is she?” You inquire once again.

“No… As this one previously said, the image of Sheziel was first revealed to this one when she invasively searched through the memories of Master Othonios. Her pseudonym has been heard several times throughout the years, but nothing worthy of mention Sheziel ever did … Well, if the master is really interested, a humongous whore Sheziel is; sexual feats, corrupting temple officials and the likes!” Agirtunamadu chuckles before continuing “It is basically what the Succubi do, damned sluts…” Narrowing her eyes, she looks to the side in contempt. After a short pause, Agirtunamadu looks back at you “Strangely enough she does not strike this one as a Succubus… Masters forgive me, but this one loves gossiping and uncovering every little secret each person holds… Naturally I inquired to my Sabbath sisters about the origins of this ‘Sheziel’ character, but to my surprise, not a single thing about Sheziel my sisters knew! Not even the eldest hags in the coven knew who she was!” Agirtunamadu exclaims in frustration.

Pausing for a moment, Agirtunamadu continues thereafter “She does not appear on any records and believe me: A very intricate social structure demons possess! One that is thoroughly documented and carefully archived in the deepest pits of the underworld; a demon popping out of nowhere? That is highly unlikely and almost unheard of…” She raises a brow and after placing her hands over her hips, she adds “Even still, her nature is demonic; quite a few cultists Sheziel probably has! Cultists who most likely perform sacrifices in her name… It makes this one feel jealous…” Once again Agirtunamadu narrows her eyes in contempt “S-So jealous that I almost used Master Othonios’ soul as leverage for a slice of Sheziel’s powers.”

“And about how powerful Sheziel might be, this one does not actually know!” Agirtunamadu goofily chuckles “This one would assume Sheziel to be fairly powerful… I wanted to use your soul as a bargaining chip to perhaps form an alliance or even take over her hypothetical cult! But all those dreams came to an end when Master Othonios defeated me in fair combat… I am now weak and if I were to get in contact with Sheziel, she would surely try to absorb what is left of my life energies, as well as using my knowledge to ultimately find you…” Once again she casually shrugs, goofily chuckling “Us demons are… Well, very competitive! There are records of feuds and rivalries dating back to the very separation of light and darkness! This one is talking about grudges being hold for eons!”

“’But what does Sheziel want with me?’ Master Othonios might ask” Agirtunamadu adds, walking in circles whilst making gestures with her hands “well, your humble --yet useless- servant does not know! Perhaps she wants revenge? Very fond of her bishop pawn Sheziel was … This one knows the Ur-Shemathim ‘bandits’ were supposed to keep master alive… And that Mistress Inzi was expected to be a countermeasure of sorts if the rowdy Ur-Shemathim decided to betray their employer… Which is ironic since Mistress Inzi was the one to actually betray Sheziel!” All of a sudden, Agirtunamadu stops and grins with unrestrained evil “Now that her plaything is no longer by her side, perhaps Sheziel wants to share her carnal passions with Master Othonios!”

Smija throws a deathly glare at the demon, angrily slapping her tail on the floor “Othonios is mine and mine only, do you not forget!”

“And this one does not object! To Lady Smija, Master Othonios solely belongs! His heart, soul and body are all hers…” Agirtunamadu shrugs, adding after smugly grinning “Ohhh! This one thinks nobody can compete with the affections of Lady Smija! After all, the lady is very skilled when it comes to ‘husband care’, is she not?!~“

“SHHH SHHHHHH!” Smija exclaims as her face blushes profusely “N-Not another word about this! Wh-What Sweetie and I do together stays between us two! I-I o-order you to erase those memories at once!”

“This one supposes she will forget them in due time… Perhaps in a few hundred years, worry not my lady.” Agirtunamadu responds with a shit-eating grin; Smija remains thoroughly blushed, firmly holding onto your hand…

>>234565

After chuckling a little bit, you ask “Now, aside from banter and gossip, what are you capable of? Combat-wise I mean; you were fairly intimidating back in the library …”

The demon lets out a long and deep sigh “Sadly, there is not much this one can do… Not in her current state anyway. Gone is the power this one had gathered throughout the years… And with no nourishment, her body was reverted back into a child-like form…” She longingly stares at nothing, adding “There are quite many Sabbath sisters who prefer to bear child-like and virginal appearances, but that is not the case with this one,” Sighing once again, she gazes into your eyes, adding “A useless little girl this one has become, a little girl who happens to be over six-thousand years old; incapable of defending herself or being of any real use!”

And so, Agirtunamadu exclaims once more with yet another shit-eating grin “And before the masters complain that I, Agirtu-Nam’adu, tricked them into believing I was of any use, remember you were the one who proposed it!” Then, her expression softens “I-In fact, this one is very thankful! Because in this state, unable to fend for herself she is … W-Worry not, this one shall pay you one way or another in due time, it is a promise.”

Then, averting her sight, she adds with preoccupation “T-Technically speaking, Lady Smija can break our blood contract as she sees fit… B-But…” The demon stammers for a bit before continuing “B-But this one knows the Lady’s heart is big and filled with much kindness… Despite her opinion about me, Lady Smija cannot just abandon a defenseless subject of hers…” With welled-up puppy eyes, she pleadingly looks at smija.

Smija sighs in defeat, curling her mouth downwards “No I can’t. M-Mother says abandoning a subject -no matter how weak they are- is a heinous crime on par with treason… A-And despite the fact that you tried to take my Sweetie’s soul away… O-Or your evil nature… O-Or even considering that I-I am not so very fond of you… You are still my subject a-and I shall never abandon you…” Then, shyly smiling, she adds “Perhaps we could become friends in due time… And maybe I could even teach you how to become a nice person as well.”

Agirtunamadu warmly smiles, hugging Smija; after burying her face on her navel, she adds “See? This one believes Lady Smija shall become a kind ruler! Perhaps the kindest queen in all the history of the Anebkheti Matriarchy!” The demon adds with a sincere smile, continuing thereafter “Worry not my Lady, if you allow this one to rest, she shall recover some of her powers, to an extent… Or, if you allow this one to feed from your dark energies, even faster the process should be!” Then, prying from the hug, the demon sheepishly adds “Worry not, she shall not take much from you… J-Just think of it as a small meal! Twice or thrice a day.” And once again she smugly grins, chuckling “The other option, this one is sure you would not allow! As it involves my person and Master Othonios doing very personal things in private~…”

>>234566

You shudder after realizing what Agirtunamadu meant… Perhaps she meant something else… After a short pause, you inquire to Miss Oracle “What other binding measures could we use to restrain the demon? We have to make absolutely sure she won’t betray us.”

Before Oracle could even say a word, Smija slithers in “Sweetie, don’t worry about it… She is completely under my control. I… Umm…” She shamefully looks to the side, twirling her long hair around her finger “Th-Thanks to my lessons on dark magic, I can grasp the basic concepts of demon binding… And considering her situation, I don’t think Agirtatunimi--- A-Agirtunamadu will betray us… I-I hope…” She then turns to the demon, saying with a stern tone “But if you ever so think about betraying us, know that I will show you no mercy. According to Apophis law, the betrayal of an un-slaved subject is punishable by death. Are we clear?”

“Y-Yes my lady…” Agirtunamadu nervously swallows, continuing “This one understands she is hated by everyone in this room and nobody trusts her in the slightest… Despite the fact that -as the lady said- lying is of little use considering her current situation, what would this one gain from it? A poor, stray soul who fell into disgrace th-this one is …” Yet again her eyes well up as she looks at Smija.

“D-Don’t make me feel bad for you!” Smija’s expression rapidly devolves into a sad frown “I-I already regret the rough treatment I gave you… P-Please forgive me, I-I don’t want to be seen as a cruel and unfair liege who treats her subjects like lowly rubbish…”

Then, Agirtunamadu maliciously chuckles once more “Truly, Lady Smija is far too kind for her own good!” You can see a glimpse of guilt in Smija’s eyes. Perhaps the demon is right; Smija is a very kind person after all… Whilst tightly holding her hand, you warmly smile at her; Smija then smiles back, wistfully sighing as she deeply gazes into your eyes.

After letting out a loud yawn, Agirtunamadu says as she walks over to the ancient idol of hers “It is time for this one to withdraw, if Lady Smija excuses her that is…” Smija nods once. The demon then continues “Remember my lady: Bound to you this one now is! Recite her name three times and this one shall come in your aid! P-Please do not forget to feed her o-or at least allow her to recover… Weak and frail this one really does feel.” Agirtunamadu gazes upon her tiny hands, afterwards exclaiming “Take good care of my idol!”

The demon then disappears and an odd necklace -comprised of a silvery chain and a small metallic tablet written in cuneiform- materializes from the idol. A faint voice echoes throughout the room as Smija reaches for the necklace “From now on, this one will be dwelling within this magical tablet; it is a simple trinket with her name and a short canticle written on it! My lady, this one hopes it is of your liking!”

Smija thoughtfully looks at the necklace on her hands, unsure about what to say… As she puts it on, Lady Oracle says with much preoccupation after placing a hand over Smija’s shoulder “Smija mine dear, I implore thee, do not let thine guard down!” Then, you catch a slight glimpse of a smile on her bony face as she places a hand over her mouth, haughtily chuckling “Goodness! Now I have realized that the boldness of thine Sweetie might have rubbed off on thee! O thou naughty child, thou art a bad influence for her!”

“M-Maybe…” Smija shyly smiles, she then says with much resolve “But you have nothing to worry about… I won’t allow this fiend to influence my behavior; that’s a promise!”

“Ouch, that hurts! What did I do to deserve being called a fiend?” You cry out in jest.

“N-No! I-I wasn’t referring to you! I-I was referring to the o-other fiend!” Smija soon devolves into a stammering mess “I-I… N-No! I-I-I!…” She nervously stutters “Y-You are not a fiend! I-I-I was referring t-to the demon! Y-Yes! N-Not you! I-I-I could never refer to you in s-such a derogative way!” You devilishly chuckle in response, planting a small peck on her cheek shortly after. Smija blushes a little as she cutely pouts, saying “Y-You big meanie…”

“What a day…” Delwen comments after being in the background for so long that her existence was almost forgotten by everyone “What now? I don’t think I’m going back to bed… At least not for the remainder of the day~” sighing, she adds “N-No perilous escapades though! I’m still a little sore…”

>>234567

“Well, I brought some things I’d like to share…” You say with a smile on your face.

“Mmmh? What could it be?” Delwen wonders; exclaiming shorty after “Oh! Yes, yes! I do remember now! Smija, could you please hand over my purse for a moment?” Then, after a few moments of rummaging the insides of her bag purse, she exclaims as a small tower of books fall from it “Here we go!~”

Smija comments: “Th-That’s a lot of books…”

You reach for the first book and say “This one’s for Maja, I guess I’ll personally give it to her… And…” After reaching for another one, yet again you exclaim with a smile “Smija, this one is for you!”

“Y-You brought me a book?” Smija’s eyes suddenly begin to shine with childlike wonder, “B-But I don’t have any gifts for you… S-S-Sweetie… Th-Thank you so much…” she comments whilst examining the cover of her newest possession, ‘Condimentum et Lupus’, a book about the adventures of a merchant and his drunkard lycanthrope companion “I shall treasure this book for the years to come…”

“Hey ain’t done yet!” Once more you exclaim, reaching for another book: ‘I dream of Ioannis’ a moving tale about a wurm who traveled far and wide --leaving a path of destruction in her wake- just to find her beloved Septentrian man. “And these two…” ‘Two hearts bound under the stars I and II’ the misadventures of two lovers who - during a starry night- literally had their hearts bound together by a crazed lich. “And this one too…” ‘I hate you, but I love you; Author’s unedited edition’ the story of a Medusa who was reluctant to declare her affections towards the man she loved. “I hope you like all these; Cornelius said they were very moving!”

“Oh, Sweetie, h-how did you know I love reading? A-And romance novels… They are my favorite genre…” Smija lovingly fawns, “Love stories… How wonderful… A-And endorsed by Mister Cornelius no less. Thank you, my love… Perhaps one day I too could write my own romance novel…” Clasping her hands together, Smija gazes upon your eyes “One based on true events…”

“I’m glad you like them, because I was saving these for last” You say, once again her starry eyes shine with childlike wonder ‘Homemaking and housekeeping capacitation for young and prospective wives, volumes I, II and III’ is the last book you had brought for her enjoyment.

Smija can barely contain her emotions, throwing herself over you for a full-bodied snake hug “S-Sweetie! Homemaking and housekeeping capacitation for young and prospective wives… Th-Three volumes…” Then, her eyes begin to well up in tears of happiness “I-I’m so happy… I-I c-could c-cry…”

As Smija plants an absurd amount of smoochies over your face, her snake half constricts your whole body… “S-Smija… M-My ribs…” You groan after hearing several cracks coming from your chest.

“S-Sorry!” She exclaims after immediately letting you go “I-I just… I-I-I just don’t know what to say…” Then, after reaching for your hand, Smija gingerly adds “Y-You shower me with these lovely gifts and I have nothing to give you in return…”

After regaining your composure, you pat Smija’s head, saying “So? I could give you all the riches in this world without expecting anything in return… At least nothing material, that is.” And so, Smija begins to cry once again… As she buries her face on your chest, she endlessly mumbles about your humility as well as how much she loves you.

>>234568

After calming down your sweet, cutesy snake bride, you reach for another book “Now, let’s see… ‘Encyclopædia Helleromanica I’” You exclaim with a smile, “Ma’, this one’s for you! Cornelius said your name could be written in this book! It’s an encyclopedia on all things Helleromani.” Then, with a more serious tone, you add “He… uh… Said you probably died around year 12 A.I… During an up---”

Oracle quickly places two fingers over your mouth, which makes you hear a whisper within your mind “Shhh… ’Tis fine mine dear child; do not mention any details about said event… I died by the hand of Apophises and I want Smija not to know many details about mine downfall… We need not to deepen her guilt any further.” Smija was too distracted browsing through the books to even notice Oracle’s move… Then, she exclaims aloud “Anyway, thanks mine child, I really appreciate thine thoughtfulness!”

“Sooo…. I hope you don’t mind that I brought you just one book…”

With her bony hand, Oracle caresses your cheek “Othonios, ‘tis the intention what counts! Thou art doing me a great favor to begin with; it doth feel as if I am having a second chance… Perhaps to amend for mine past mistakes and sins.” You catch a glimpse of a smile as the skeletal lady circles her arms around your back, then with a very warm hug, Oracle says softly “Know that this old pile of bones is also very fond of thee…”

As you are about to leave, Smija asks Delwen if she does not mind keeping the books inside her bag since they are somewhat heavy; Delwen responds with a casual ‘nah’, commenting that Laylah also enjoys all sorts of human-made trinkets. Your team then heads outside the room in search for Maja, who has got a gift waiting for her…

>>234569

Walking down one of the many hallways, you find Alethia and Dotouzi who are casually arguing; Katya the Kikimora quickly translates as the barbarian argues about petty matters… Once Alethia takes notice of your presence, she quickly comes scuttling in your direction, giving you a big hug and a warm welcome; your face is then buried between her breasts as she effortlessly lifts your whole body off the ground. Dotouzi steps in, very angrily suggesting if you want to take his woman, you would have to do so over his corpse… Apparently he is challenging you to a duel.

“Get a hold of yourself, Honey!” Alethia complains as she lets you go, patting your head “You’re the only man for me and you know it…”

“Prove it” Katya quickly translates Dotouzi’s Septentrianspeak.

“Are your brand new clothes not proof enough?” She says pointing at his new set of plain white silken clothes “Your trimmed beard and hair…” Alethia carefully traces one of her bladed fingers through Dotouzi’s beard “Or the naughty little secrets with share with each other every night~…” She devilishly whispers into his ear.

Then, with a saddened pout, Alethia crosses her arms under her rather big bust, saying “I’m only expressing my gratitude, there’s no need to be jealous!” Then, as she once again pets your head, Alethia adds “This little guy right here was the one who made it possible for us to be together, along with his very lovely Apophis bride! Besides, I was a bit worried about him! You should’ve seen him being carried by his beloved Smija! All battered and bruised…” Afterwards, the Arachne places her hands over her hips, adding with a scolding tone “And you should be thankful too! You were also prospecting for a suitable loving partner… Even though I am not the woman you were looking for, I have been trying hard to become your dreamed girl… A-And I swear I do try very hard…”

When Katya is finally done with her translation, Dotouzi immediately breaks into tears. He throws himself over Alethia, which causes her to flinch “Sorree… Zayka moya…” He wails whilst burying his face on Alethia’s chest… The two of them leave shortly after, with Alethia trying her best to console her big, hairy barbarian.

“Despite his looks and thirst for blood, he possesses very tender heart… Easily breaking into tears; is of much cuteness…” Katya cutely chuckles, then after placing a hand over your shoulder, she adds “I am glad to see you walk once more, Master Othonios. Please refrain from causing loud explosions, Napaecan people are like very scaredy kot!” She chuckles again as she walks away, bidding your party goodbye as she had other matters to attend.

>>234570

As you keep going forward, you finally come across Maja “Good morning fatty! Brother, Miss Oracle, how do you do?” She waves at you with a rather forced smile.

“I-I’m not fat!” Smija complains.

“Perhaps not right now, but I do remember this little snake who was as chubby as a sausage!” Maja sneers.

“Maja…” Oracle says sternly.

“I-I could not resist… I-It’s hard for me not to!” Maja pouts, silently staring at Miss Oracle. After a moment, Oracle tilts her head, motioning Maja to continue “I-I’m sorry ‘sis, I… I love you the way you are; fat or not.”

“See? Was it so hard?” Smija warmly smiles whilst hugging her beloved sister “I love you too, my dear sister; don’t you ever forget…” And so, moments later, Smija adds “Now, my Sweetie has something for you!”

“Mmmh? I heard you adventure was pretty lucrative!~” Maja remarks, slithering close to you, “Perhaps I should have kept you as my slave! Brother… In law.” She adds with much malevolence, flickering her tongue while hissing.

“Maja… Second waring.” Oracle says once more, pointing a finger at Maja.

“Alright alright! I’ll cease the hostilities… I-It’s just that it is really, really, reallyreallyreally hard for me not to behave this way!” Maja responds with a sad frown “S-Sorry…” She then wraps around your body for a hug, shyly planting a kiss over your forehead “I-It may not seem like it… But Lady Oracle here thinks I’m filled with much love… H-However, I am unable to ‘express myself properly’, thus I… W-Well, I tend to say or do awkward --and often threatening- things.” Maja says as her bind gets tighter.

For several seconds, Maja hugs you in a very awkward manner until you groan “S-Such as crushing my ribsss…”

With a rather sad expression, Maja adds after letting you go: “See? It is hard to be a ‘nice’ person…” She does bear a striking resemblance to her sister, especially when her pretty eyes beg for your forgiveness. Thus, after being nearly crushed to death once more, you take a few seconds to regain your composure… Then, reaching for your pocket, you take out the small book titled ‘A guide to Humans: Second Revised Edition’.

“Mmhh?” As you hand the book over, Maja lifts a brown in surprise, “A book on human behavioral patterns…” Upon closely inspecting the book, a cutely evil smile from ear to ear appears on her pretty scarred face “With this… WITH THIS I SHALL CAPTURE A MAN FOR MYSELF!” Maja then lets out a somewhat maniacal laugh, tightly grasping her newest acquisition, “With my combined charms and newly-found niceness and humbleness, I will surely conquer the heart of a man foolish enough to be infatuated by ME!” Then, she dives right into your chest; tightly hugging you with both arms and snake body “This book truly is the best complement to the teachings of lady oracle… And you Othonios… Brother… I thank you. You are the best brother an Apophis could ever ask for!” She says while rubbing her face against your chest whilst cutely hissing.

“I think you’re stretching it too far!” You chuckle while petting her head.

>>234571

“NONSENSE!” With a single tear rolling down her faintly-scarred cheek, Maja deeply gazes into your eyes “You pardoned my life TWICE! Y-You… You made me see the foolishness of my ways! Even though you took my precious venom away, you… Y-You…” Then, with a saddened pout --a seemingly common reaction in the Aneb bloodline- Maja adds “Y-You allowed me to begin anew… Y-You gave another opportunity…” Then, she looks at you with the same heart-wrenching puppy eyes Smija gives you whenever she is about to cry “I love you… I-I love so much… I-In a purely brother-and-sister way…” And so… Maja finally breaks into tears, greatly moved by your thoughtful gift “I can only hope to find a man half as good as you are… F-Foolish yet kindhearted…” She whispers as she rests her head over your shoulder.

After Maja is finally able to regain her composure, she gingerly asks “T-Tell me again, do you really not have any brothers… O-Or cousins… O-Or male relatives who happen to be single?”

Smiling, you reply: “Nope… I’m the last Constantinos I know of.”

Then, all of a sudden, a look of determination invades Maja “Then I swear I’ll give my best to conquer a man’s heart. Someone… S-Someone I can call… my…” She hesitates for a moment before continuing “My Snookums” Both Smija and Oracle giggle, which causes Maja to blush profusely “D-Don’t laugh! That’s the legal pet name I’m gonna give my husband!” Her blush then deepens “I-I… I picked it a long time ago… A-And it’s been decided already! He shall be my Snookums!”

After taking a deep breath, the same look of determination invades Maja again “I shall conquer his heart and soul! Make him completely mine! I… I will put him under my spell! HE SHALL FOREVER BE MINE!” And once more she lets out a cutesy evil laugh, adding afterwards: “And I… I shall belong to him… Heart, body and soul. Isn’t that right ‘sis? The way it should be…”

Looking at Smija, Maja raises her clenched fist and with grinned teeth --she looks somewhat funny with her two missing fangs- Maja exclaims “That will teach our lousy father not to call us unlovable abominations! This love will not be fabricated… Oh, no, no! It will be real and my Snookums and I will thoroughly enjoy it for the rest of our pitiful lives! VENOM IS FOR THE WEAK, A REAL WOMAN MUST CONQUER THE HEART OF HER BELOVED MAN THROUGH LOVE AND DEDICATION!”

“Now if you excuse me, I have a book to read…” Maja plants a small peck over you cheek, as well as hugging Smija and Miss Oracle both; shortly afterwards she parts away, with that same look of determination on her face.

“Maja!” Oracle exclaims as your sister-in-law hurriedly slithers away “I believe thou to be much cuter when thou art happy! Remember, thine lesson shall begin in an hour!”

>>234572

Later, right after having a quick breakfast, you come across the Gallus Brothers who seemed pretty eager --you could tell by their expressionless, emaciated faces- to see you:

“Howdy, Shorty! The man we wanted to see… We…” Says Trevonius.

“We really appreciate you bringin’ our sister back” Says Alcedinus.

“We didn’t properly thank you… W-Well it ain’t like we’ve got anything to thank you with” T.

“S-So if ya ever find yourself in a pinch once again” A.

“Like, dunno, ya need some help with anything” T.

“Don’t hesitate callin’ on us; we’ll do everything in our power to pay you back” A.

“You’re like family now… Don’tcha forget that!” They both say in unison whilst each brother shakes one of your hands.

Afterwards, you inquire on the whereabouts of Regula and Cornelius, who you have not seen in quite a while:

“Yeah… Regula… Regula’s been takin’ it surprisingly well…” A.

“Y-Yeah! She don’t see her incorporeal state as some sorta disability…” T.

“Nor she’s scared shitless about it… Nor depressed. Unlike us right after bein’ turned into these chunks of jerky and bones…” A.

“We kinda thought Cornelius was an asshole, but he’s been surprisingly helpful” T.

“And our sister kinda loves him so… So he’s gonna stay here as long as he wants to…” A.

“And as for those two, they went for a walk through the city, I guess for old time’s sake” T.

Then, a thought suddenly comes across your mind. Pulling out the ‘not-so-detailed map of the Gallus family vault’, you swiftly hand it over to Trevonius.

“Mmmh… An old map of our vault…” T.

“This is pretty good, from the Seven Golden Beards no less. Too bad it’s in dwarvish…” A.

“Yeah, I think dad hired those guys for maintenance… Kinda sad they disbanded a few decades back.” T.

“Welp, we’re gonna hold onto this; should come in handy whenever we find someone foolish enough to traverse through the ‘ol necropolis reaching for the vault’s backdoor. Thanks Shorty!” They both say in unison. Creepy, it is like their minds are connected somehow.

Afterwards, you inquire about pawn store to sell some loot, as well as asking again for a gunsmith… Just to make sure you are on the right path:

“Y’know Shorty, I wouldn’t advise to sell the shityatotallydidn’tstealfromthelibrary to any of the local pawnstores…” Alcedinus says smugly.

“Let’s say they’re all in bed with the authorities and would probably know where those goods come from…” T.

“That could be bringin’ lotsa trouble to all of us…” A.

“However, I think selling that stuff down at the Tomb of King Nabuapalussur could pose no troubles” T.

“Remember? The shanty town down the necropolis, the one we’ve talked about before… Shit’s filled with all sorts of illegal goods and shady pawnbrokers…” A.

“Yeah, there’s also the gunsmith down there; Orcish broad works pretty fast, as long as you have the right amount of monetary incentive that is!” T.

After a short chit-chat, mostly about the current state of the ruins outside Napaeca proper and your nice escapade with the goblins, the brothers finally bid you goodbye after mockingly warning you that ‘If you ain’t careful, one of these days you’re gonna end up like us; it ain’t nice to try and shag a beloved girl with a shriveled piece of jerky for a prick.’ How thoughtful.

>>234573

Later, as you are about to head out in order to buy some supplies (Namely ammunitions and several other explosive goodies), Smija approaches sporting a worried look: “I-Is it safe for you to go out? There are baddies looking for you…”

You casually shrug at the thought… Perhaps she is right, but who else is going to buy your supplies? Everyone in the villa seems to be busy… After asking Smija to make you company, a look of determination appears on her cute face “Well, you will be safe; because today I shall be your guardian!”

When Oracle inquires if it is actually safe for you two to go out, Smija smiles and says thereafter “Y-Yes, don’t worry about us Miss Oracle! I shall keep Sweetie safe and sound, away from any harm and suspicious individuals who’d like to take him away from me.” Then, she reaches for Delwen’s bag, pulling out two very heavy hooded robes. Right after putting all of your equipment -armor pieces and such- back on, Smija haves you wear the heavy robe. She exclaims in delight upon looking at your obscured face “Now, with these robes our identities shall be further concealed!” And after tightly holding your hand, Smija drags you outside, exclaiming “S-So let’s go! We have much to do!”

Thankfully most stores were located a short distance away from the Gallus Villa, making your jaunt a bit safer since you are close to home. Throughout the whole trip, Smija appeared to be very wary of the surroundings, constantly flickering her tongue, as well as observing everyone who passed nearby; apparently, she is using both her acute sense of smell and heat sense to detect if any suspicious individuals are following you around… Once she gives you the all clear, you are allowed to keep walking.

After visiting a grand total of two stores, you bought:

>10 Flashbangs.

>10 Firebombs (Smuggled, since they are considered to be dangerous goods, this means they are a bit more costly.)

>12 Dragonshots (Again, Smuggled and a bit more costly than usual.)

>6 Rifled Slugs.

>8 Silver-coated Balls for pistol.

>Filled 2 flasks with Mana Potion.

>8 bottles of holy water.

>4 Boxes of Jelly-filled Hardtacks (Smija could not resist and ate a whole box, who are you to stop your waifu from indulging herself in sweets?)

>1 bag of sweet pebbleroot sweets.

>1 bag full of unspecified Beef Jerky (About a Kilogram, suffice to say it is a lot.)

>4 Hearthstones.

>1 Water Crystal.

>3 Empty watertight leather bags.

>A pair of woolen socks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All summing up a grand total of 80 Silver Denarii, plus discounts from haggling and taxes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>>234574

Once done, you begin to browse several other shops in hopes of finding something appropriate for Inzi to wear… Casually chatting with your grape snake, a thought comes across your mind:

“You know… I’d like it if you were the one to haggle whenever we get to sell the loot from the library…”

“Wh-Why me?! Y-You know I’m a bit… Shy.” Smija exclaims in surprise.

“Because I want you to feel more secure about yourself; we need to boost your self-confidence!” You smile, then adding “Besides, you said you wanted to learn my trade, you gotta learn how to haggle with shrewd, miserable pawnbrokers!”

“I’m not sure, Sweetie… I-I could mishandle the whole situation… Ruin all of your hard work…” Smija worriedly frowns.

“Where did your motivation go?” You stop all of a sudden, commenting thereafter “You know, sometimes you can be pretty intimidating… Perhaps we could use your pretty face in order to ‘coerce’ people into paying a fair price for our merchandise!

“D-Do you really think I could do it? T-To trust me with such an important task…” Smija once more starts shyly to twirl her hair around her finger…

Once reaching for her left hand, the one proudly sporting her proposition ring, you raise it to face level and say with a stern tone “Look at this ring each time you feel insecure; let it be a remainder of your accomplishments… And my love…” And after smiling, you deeply gaze upon her pretty eyes “Smija you said you’d give your life for me, I think it’s fair I’d trust you with mine; so yes, I’ll entrust you with the important task of selling our valuable loot.” Smija silently gives you a hug in response, and for a few moments, she keeps lovingly staring at her ring…

Moments later, once spotting a shop selling armors, you say “Let’s check out this shop, there seems to be lots of miscellaneous armor pieces for sale; Inzi needs new armor! Perhaps you know her measurements since… Well you’re a girl and girls kinda know about that stuff!” Which causes Smija to cutely giggle… She does know Inzi’s measures after all, murmuring something about a ‘204, 90-68-101.’

After Smija thoroughly checked several combinations of armored breastplates, breast cups and chain skirts, she finally found a set for Inzi: A simple chain skirt just like the one she used to wear, steel breast cups which could double as a helmet, a steel tail guard, steel sheen and forearm guards and a simple corinthian-styled helm specially designed for lizardfolk… Smija said Inzi needs a helmet; she does not like her running around without proper head protection, which is unsafe.

You spent a total of 3 Golden Denarii, making you hope these expensive pieces of armor fit on her heavy frame… Smija assures you they will; she has a superb memory after all.

As you begin to head back home, Smija begins to silently fret… Minutes later, she asks: “Sweetie… I-I was wondering… Is Lucius the name of Mr. Cornelius’ long lost brother?”

Surprised by her sudden question, you respond seconds later “I think so; Cornelius mentioned him quite a few times. Said he was kidnapped by girls from Anebkheti and his whole family was greatly aff---“

On that very moment, you could see Smija’s expression morphing into a sad frown… Before she began brooding even more, you try to change the topic of conversation by exclaiming “O-Oh, look at that! It’s… uh… A bird… O-Or something!” And as your snake bride is distracted, you quickly circle an arm around her waist, effectively pulling her closer “Haha, gotcha!” You chuckle whilst smiling at her; it appears she already forgot about her preoccupations as the two of you keep going through the dusty streets.

>>234576

“CORNELIUS ALEKSANDRU LYKOSIESCU, YOU’RE IN BIG TROUBLE ONCE I FIND YOU! COME APOLOGIZE TO OUR GUESTS AT ONCE!” Regula angrily yells as she stands up… She is outraged by Cornelius’ behavior. Afterwards, she apologizes with much honesty “I-I’m deeply sorry ‘bout all this… H-He’s… Ughhh! He’s like a child sometimes!”

“It’s fine… I can understand the reason behind his resentment…” Smija says with a disheartened tone… Immediately upon noticing your deep frown, she looks into your eyes and slowly shakes her head, softly adding “Please, d-don’t give him more reasons to lash out… H-His words can barely hurt us…”

“Smija, that ain’t right and ya know it. I’ll bring Cornelius back right away and make him apologize to y’all!” Regula angrily exclaims as she stomps away “Maybe Otho here can throw a few bottles of holy water at him, that’ll teach Cornie not to be so foulmouthed! CORNELIUS HWERE ARE YA?!”

Moments later, after Smija once again motions you to stay put, she inquires “My love, what follows next?”

You take a deep sigh and respond whilst thoughtfully scratching your chin “I’m not sure, there’s probably a bunch of Sheziel’s cronies looking for us… So I think skipping town could be a sensible option… Although, there’s still much to do here… And there’s also the necromancer place under Napaeca, not to mention the gunsmith I want to visit.”

“If thine new spellbooks art worrying thee, know that thou can learn those along the way; with mine help of course! I would be delighted to be of assistance once more!” Oracle exclaims, later adding “Now, our most sensible option would be to visit the Necropolis in search for this necromancer character, ‘tis right below out feet! However, the necropolis doth sound like a dangerous place… So…”

Hovering her hand over the map, Oracle points at Aneb-Memphtoh to the west: “As to not endanger thine life any further, methinks another sensible option would be to visit the homeland of both thine beloved bride-to-be and thine dearest sister-in-law… I am sure they will give us a warm welcome in Aneb-Memphtoh!”

She then points at the Boglands of Bolotnika, to the north: “Warmer than the welcome swamp septentrians from Bolotnika ought to give us! Which wouldst fall as our third option since the location is also considerably close…”

Then, she points at a very dense mountain range north of Bolotnika: “As for the other places, I am not too sure of: The Kerpatii mountains art a very dangerous location, even back during mine days: Roving bands of feral septentrians and crazed dwarves, as well as dragons, lycanthropes, dangerous landslides and avalanches… And… G-Gnomes…” She shudders and rattles in fear…

And finally, Oracle points at the northern coastline: “The same goes for the Blighted Coast: Barren, storm-struck deadlands and a haven for pirates and smugglers of all kinds… Not to mention both places art very far away!”

After placing a hand over your shoulder, you catch a glimpse of a smile on her expressionless face “In the end, ‘tis all up to thee!”

“Brrr….” Maja shivers for a few seconds before saying “Brother, if the gunsmith deal worries you so much, my sister has one under her employ… And she lives in Aneb-Memphtoh too!” Then, resting an arm over your shoulder, she adds “Well, technically the gunsmith in question is actually a polymath, her expertise spanning many subjects ranging from natural sciences, to metaphysics and even alchemy… She’s a genius through and through and Smija knows her fairly well; with enough incentive, I’m sure she’ll agree to help you!” With much disgust on her face, Maja exclaims “In my opinion, that’s better than employing one of the rats dwelling underneath Napaeca! That place is disgusting!”

“Maja… Second warning…” Oracle sternly says; which causes Maja to stammer.

“B-But it’s true! Th-The necropolis is filthy and ridden with equally filthy ratpeople! They’re full of diseases a-and are yucky as well! I love rats as much as any other lamia does, but the ones inhabiting the necropolis are truly disgusting! Not to mention it’s a dangerous place, I used to conduct slaver businesses in there!” Maja exclaims.

“Ssnirjia isn’t going to like us meddling with her employees… And… M-Mother is probably going to scold me… Again.” Smija says with much worry.

“I’m sure Ssnirjia would LOVE to get her hands on a top secret blueprint for a HUMAN-DESIGNED gun! Her chief engineer would also love to get her hands on it… But for reasons much different than those of our beloved sister…” Maja smiles, adding thereafter “And as for mommy… You left without saying a word, she’s very worried about you! Plus you can flaunt your cool husband-to-be as much as you’d like! You have told me so!” Laughing with unrestrained evil, Maja finalizes “Imagine how jealous Jana is going to be!”

>>234577

“Otho, you’re the one calling the shots! Where are we going next?!” Delwen inquires after stretching “Ohhhoho my soreness has completely disappeared! I’m looking forward to our next adventure!”

As night soon approaches, you begin to ponder over the next course of action for tomorrow… Surely leaving Napaeca altogether would be a sensible idea, as to not cause any further problems to the Gallus household were you suddenly attacked by Sheziel’s cronies… Despite remaining safe for quite some time, one can never be too sure when it comes to shady demonic individuals who want to abduct you for reasons yet unknown. The map is over the table and your options are very well displayed before you:

Shall you stay in town in search for the necromancer’s hiding spot, as well as enjoying all the relative commodities offered by both Napaeca and the Gallus Villa?

Or shall you keep moving, away from this apparently safe haven, in hopes of finding a necromancer elsewhere outside of this ruined city and its surroundings?

>The choice is yours, what will you do?

---———————

>Inventory: (Resupplied ammunitions, food and several other adventuring goods; your loot remains unsold and the many books and spellbooks you snatched from the library remain unread.)

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells: (Nothing new.)

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions: (Nothing new.)

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>234578

We may want to keep going to avoid trouble, if anything we could head towards the swamp or go see that gunsmith thats right next to the obelisk of truth just to restock on supplys.

>>234578

Stay in napacea, but relocate to somewhere that won't get our friends in the crossfire if demonbitch's cultists attack.

Here's a poll, vote away:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://poal.me/ktoltn

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Should've done this yesterday, I kinda had a hunch this was gonna end up as a tie.

>>234882

The only objection to staying here is that it puts our friends at risk. If we relocate to a cheap motel or something but stay in napacea, we'd get the best of both worlds.

>>234920

Well yes, if you do decide to stay in Napaeca, the party's gonna have to find another place to stay, away from the Gallus household.

But first, let's see what the majority votes for, I thought about making a poll since this is an important decision and also because there's a bunch of lurkers reading the story, I wanted to see what they'd vote for.

Did we pick up the sigma 4 with the requisition forms yet if we leave we have to do that on the way out

If we do stay in Napaeca we should see if we can capture and interrogate one of Sheziel's underling if we run into one of them

I guess it's time to close to poll, update should be out soon.

Kinda narrow 6 vs 4, leaving Napaeca for Aneb-Memphtoh wins with 60% of the votes. Muh democracy.

>>234578

“Mmmh…” You thoughtfully scratch your chin “We could stay here in Napaeca but relocating to somewhere that won't get our friends in the crossfire if the demonbitch's cultists attack… The only objection to staying here is that it puts our friends at risk, but if we relocate to a cheap hostel or something, we'd get the best of both worlds” Thinking it through for a moment, you finally reach internal consensus after several minutes of deliberation “Although… Perhaps it’d best if we skipped town altogether or else we'll get caught by that inquisition we dealt with last time.”

“Y’know, the inquisitors don’t really come much to these parts… Mainly ‘cause the whole city’s packed with undead, plus this is old temple turf! Those guys won’t dare comin’ here, ever!” Alcedinus boasts.

“Better be safe than sorry, there are three options we could follow… And I think the most reasonable one would be ‘The Obelisk of Truth’ in Aneb-Memphtoh.” You say.

“Interesting, so you decided to meet your extended family after all!” Maja exclaims.

However, Smija does not appear to be too excited about your decision. She worriedly looks to the side, sighing “Snaja is going to beat me up…”

Maja laughs in response “What?! Haha oh wow!”

“Nobody’s gonna beat you up, we’re just going on a short trip to see if we can get Oracle’s body back! We can’t stay here; it wouldn’t be safe neither for us nor our friends.” You add.

“Y-You don’t understand! Snaja is a bit… H-How to say it?…” Twirling her hair around her finger, Smija says “She’s very harsh… Snaja and Inzi share many similarities, personalities included.”

“Snaja is HUGE and her body is covered by scales! She’s so damned ugly!” Maja exclaims.

As Oracle sighs once, she accusatively points at your sister-in-law “Maja… Third warning! Thou shall not refer to any of thine siblings in such a derogatory manner!” She scolds.

“B-B-But it is true! She has got scales all over her arms, upper body and cheeks! And she’s so big and strong… She’s like a tarrasque!” Maja stammers. After regaining her composure, she asks “A-Anyhow ‘sis, why would she want to beat you up?!”

“B-Because I-I hurt her feelings… B-By leaving without saying goodbye…” Smija’s expression devolves into a sad frown as she continues “I’ve encountered her twice… Once while travelling alone and once while… Wh-While on my first date with Otho,” She sighs before continuing “We did not talk the second time as she was too far away to see me, but the first time she… W-Well… Um… She was very angry with me…” Then, she crosses her arms and puts a finger to her chin “P-Perhaps she is still travelling around? M-Maybe she hasn’t returned home, I hope… A-And I also hope she’s safe and sound, unharmed and healthy…”

“Nah, she’s probably back home, you know how Snaja is: Can’t stay away for too long or else she gets nostalgic!” Maja devilishly grins.

Oracle floats closer to Smija, placing a hand over her shoulder “All the more reason to pay a visit to thine family: Make amends with thine mother and sister… And to boast thine lovely and valiant husband-to-be! Would that not be fantastic?” Smija shyly smiles in response, tightly holding your hand with fingers intertwined.

>>235418

---

“We should see if we can capture and interrogate one of Sheziel's underlings if we ever run into one of them!” You grin whilst rubbing your hands. After a short pause, you continue: “Anyways… Before leaving Napaeca, I want to see if I can exchange this thing somewhere…” You say whilst taking out the ‘Acquisition order for IV (4) Kilograms of explosive Σ-IV’ you found lying on the floor of the Kovac family vault; later explaining that Sigma-4 is a very explosive, yet stable, military-grade alchemical composition banned for civilian use. The order was issued about a year ago by a Legate named ‘Orthonos Constantinopoulos’ for the Armicustos in the Grod of Netidava. The items requested are yet to be acquisitioned, as shown by a blank square where some kind of stamp or seal ought to be, with an inscription above that reads ‘Acquired’. The order itself appears to be already signed, evidenced by a hastily scribed signature which probably belongs to the same Legate who issued it. Later, you say “I mean, it’s already signed, probably done by this ‘Orthonos Constantinopoulos’ guy… So…” Continuing after letting out a chuckle “Maybe I could pick it up, it might come in handy! I don’t know where this Grod of Netidava place is located though…”

Oracle exclaims in horror “Othonios art thou mad?! Carrying dangerous ordinance around, what in heaven’s name dost thou intend to do with such thing?! And would that not be stealing from the Septentrian Legion?!”

Delwen comes to the rescue before you could even blurt some lousy excuse: “Nope!~ According to adventurer law: Whosoever finds it first, can rightfully claim it!~”

“But what if the item was lost without the knowledge of its owner? By imperial law, that could be considered thievery!” Oracle exclaims, once more playing as the voice of reason.

“Nu-uh!~ It says so right here in the Imperial-sanctioned Adventurer’s Handbook:” Delwen quickly reaches for her bag, taking out a leather-bound handbook; it is badly battered and looks somewhat old “Unowned property --res nullius and res derelicta- becomes ‘the property of the first taker’ as long as said property is found in a ‘uninhabited location’; be it in the wilderness or an abandoned structure… Which is considered as ‘occupatio’ or the seizure of unowned goods located in an un-owned location… This is the basis of Helleromani expansionism which took place centuries ago! Since the library where we found this note is in ruins, it means we didn’t steal a thing!~” She exclaims with much excitement.

Afterwards, Delwen adds with a smile “Humans have so many rules and laws! I think it’s amusing how they even manage getting through the day without breaking a few laws or going to jail!” She then begins to explain -in very much detail- how the many laws from different cultures worked and she did so for several minutes… Nobody expected someone such as Delwen to be so knowledgeable about human laws, and not just Helleromani, but from several other countries as well.

“I suppose thou make a fair point…” Oracle sighs in resignation, visibly shocked by Delwen’s knowledge…

Moments later, Maja says after shrugging “And as for Netidava, it’s a ‘Castrum’ -or ‘Grod’ as Septentrians call it- located west of Napaeca… The Septentrians use it as a military outpost since the place borders our realm…” Then saying with a wistful smile “Ahhh, good memories! I bought so many prisoners from there… Fine men indeed, the legion guys make their convicts work in the mines and do all sorts of physical activities; they were all in very good shape!”

“Wh-What are you talking about?” Delwen curiously wonders.

“Slaves, what else would I be talking about? I used to buy unwanted and unruly prisoners from military outposts from all over Septentria and Ignensae!” Maja proudly boasts showing a wide smile on her face, “From time to time I indulged myself in hunts as well; chasing poor brigands around was so fun!” Then laughing with unrestrained evil, she adds “Especially when they soiled their pants! But… Most of my slaves were thieves, murderers and rapists bought off legionnaire camps… Hunts and raids were only occasional.”

“Th-That’s scary… And not very nice.” Delwen fearfully comments, flying away and hiding behind Smija.

“I take great pride in what used to be my trade…” Maja boasts once more, continuing after a short pause “But, perhaps it is for the best that I resigned! Free men don’t like slavers!~” She cutely winks, later adding “I think hunting down a man and conquering his heart is an interesting prospect… And very challenging one as well! Something I’m looking forward to experience…”

Clapping her hands once, Maja finalizes: “Anyhow, Netidava is right on the course of your journey, right before the border with our realm; it’s a good place to rest! They’re very leery of Apophises however, but nothing a bit of intimidation won’t solve!~” She winks once more before slithering away.

>>235419

After concluding your short reunion, you encounter both Regula and Cornelius on the way back to your bedroom: “Smija, Othonios, got a moment?” Regula inquires. With a serious tone she says to Cornelius “Tell ‘em. Please.”

“No.” Cornelius bluntly responds with arms crossed.

Regula then exclaims in frustration “Cornie, didn’t we talk ‘bout this?!”

“I’ve got nothing to be sorry about! Those are my true feelings… I lied to no one!” Cornelius exclaims in anger “Do you not understand? I don’t like her kind, I don’t like Apophes,” He shakes his head several times, adding: “And I CANNOT and WILL NOT conceal this fact like some two-faced liar; that’s not who I am!” Then, Cornelius looks at Smija with much contempt “If they’ve got a problem with that, then so be it! I greatly respect Othonios, but her? No, and I don’t care if I don’t know her one bit…” Taking a deep breath, he turns back at Regula “I won’t lie to others or myself!” Deeply frowning, Cornelius vanishes from sight as his disembodied voice thunders across the hallway “Now if you all excuse me, I’ve got other things to do.”

“I’m sorry… I…” Regula says with slumped shoulders “I tried…” Sighing in defeat, she begins to walk away, disappearing after phasing through a wall.

Yet again, Cornelius showed his disdain towards Apophes… Since his feelings are perhaps justified, you are unsure how to react… As you frown deepens, Smija tightly holds onto your hand, softly caressing your cheek with the tip of her tail; with a saddened frown she silently shakes her head several times… “Sweetie… Let him be; it’s not fair, we don’t get to complain… N-Not with something I might have caused.” In complete silence, two of you return to the bedroom thereafter.

Smija appears to be bothered as she lies in bed belly-down with her face buried in a pillow. After you quickly finish cleaning your guns and neatly arranging the insides of your bag for tomorrow’s trip, you approach Smija…

Sitting right next to her, you start running your fingers through her hair… it is so soft and silky, she smells very nice too… ‘How could anyone hate something so beautiful?’ You wonder whilst admiring Smija’s lovely figure… Surely Apophes do bad things every now and again, but that is no excuse to treat Smija so badly; after all, it is not her fault Cornelius’ brother was taken away so many decades ago… And to add insult to injury, Smija is reluctant to fight back; she will not even let you argue with Cornelius!

Reaching down and planting a kiss over her head, a bit worried you inquire: “Smija… Are you okay? Are you… Crying?”

“As odd as it might appear to be, I am not…” She rolls over, looking at you with very sad eyes “It just… It really makes me think about the damage we cause; I feel as if I’m indebted with Mr. Cornelius… That I owe him somehow.”

Taking a deep breath, she continues “Sweetie… Mr. Cornelius holds you in very high regard, Miss Regula has told me so…” Smija sits up, holding both of your hands as she says “I was thinking that perhaps I should talk to him,” Adding with a shy smile “Y-You know him better than I do and… W-Well I… I’m not very good with decisions…” Hesitating for a moment, Smija takes a deep breath, saying thereafter “I’d like to have a word with him… However, I am unsure if I should…”

Looking to the right, Smija thoughtfully stares at nothing in particular; for several minutes she remains in silence… Until the stillness is interrupted by her sweet voice “Sweetie, I… I have something important to tell him. It’s… I-It is something that has been on my mind ever since I first met him a few nights ago,” Placing both hands on your shoulders, Smija looks at you in preoccupation “D-Do you think I should speak with Mr. Cornelius? P-Perhaps if you come along it would be better… I-I don’t know… I-I…” Deeply gazing into your eyes, she asks almost pleadingly “What do you say? Sh-Should I do it? Wh-What sh-should I do? Th-This is so difficult…”

>Well, what do you say?

---———————

>Inventory: (Nothing new)

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells: (Nothing new)

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions: (Nothing new)

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

>>235506

“And what do you wanna talk with Corneliust?” You inquire with much curiosity.

“W-Well… Um…” Once more, Smija begins twirling a lock of hair around her finger “I think we…” She hesitates for a moment, mustering enough inner strength “I think we might be related.”

“Th-Though I am not too certain about it! That is the reason I wanted to speak with him…” Smija states very nervously “P-Perhaps inquiring about daddy, but… in a manner as to not arise any suspicions in case we are not related…”

Somewhat saddened, Smija adds “I don’t think Mr. Cornelius will appreciate… W-Would… L-Like to know…” She stammers for a few seconds “I-I don’t think he would be too happy to know he might be related to…” She then looks at you with teary eyes… “A… M-Mons---”

After noticing your frown, Smija immediately stop mid-sentence “S-Sorry! I’m sorry! I-I almost said it… P-Please forgive me…” And after taking a deep breath, she says “I hope you understand; th-this is very difficult for me… I am not sure if I should do this… The way he referred to me… The way he looked at me” Placing a hand over her heart, she adds with much despair “It makes my heart ache with much guilt… To know that I might… Th-That I might be the product of his pain and suffering…”

>>235680

Then, wistfully smiling, Smija continues “I have always wanted to meet more members of my family…” Sighing once, she adds while avoiding eye contact “Mother’s side is very extensive and I know most of my aunts and cousins… B-But daddy’s side… Let us say I barely even knew him…” Smija then gazes deeply into your eyes “I… I-I have this naïve illusion… A-A dream should be the proper way to describe it… Yes, a dream of reconnecting with my father’s side of the family… That perhaps they would somehow accept me… A-And love me as much I love daddy… T-To love me as one of their own…” Her smile, however, is short lived… Her cute expression soon devolves into a saddened frown “I suppose it is common practice for my kind to barely know the paternal side of their family…” After taking a deep breath, Smija finalizes “A-And I seek to correct this wrong.”

“I want to know Mr. Cornelius… I… Want to know him…” Smija’s eyes turn watery as she becomes a stammering mess “I-I w-want h-him to… I-I want him to b-be my uncle…” She then grabs both of your hands, adding “B-But I am unsure about it… I am unsure if he would like to… T-To… B-Be… I-I am unsure… I-I am u-unsure about so many things… A-And very, v-very deep in my heart, I hope… I-I h-hope for the possibility of being relatives to be slim…”

“Sweetie, w-what sh-should I do?” She leans closer, tears begin to roll down her cheeks “I-I am so sorry for dragging you into this mess… I just… I-I just want to know what you would do… Wh-What w-would my Sweetie do?”

Smija holds onto your hands ever so tightly, her head sinks dejectedly with long and gleaming hair draping over her beautiful -yet sorrowful- face… As her grasp tightens, she places both of your hands right above her heart; keeping very still whilst softly sobbing, her somewhat cold tears begin to rain against your bare hands…

>What do you do?

>>235684

If you know what happened to Cornelius's brother, you should tell him.

>>235684

even if he doesn't like that they're related he'll like that his brother went free.

Update soon™ been busy, sorry guys. Tomorrow most likely.

Also testing these dank nigger runes 🐍💯💦💦

Ok I lied, update tomorrow life's been pretty hectic as of late, I've barely had any free time to write and I'm pretty damn tired whenever I'm 'free.' Send help.

>>238875

There was some captcha bullshit going on yesterday, so I couldn't update, let alone shitpost some faggot was spamming the place and captcha measures had to be taken.

So meanwhile, I took some time to proof-read the update and found some shit I didn't like, shit should be done in a matter of hours.

>>235684

Alright, due to the anti-spam measures going on (Which ain't working I gotta say, /v/'s a fucking mess right now) this update's gonna be special:

http://pastebin.com/1iu1K0Gf

From now on, I'll upload the updates on Pastebin until this whole furfag spambot deal is over; have fun and sorry for the wait.

>>238978

posting seems to be working fine for me right now, although it might be different for you because of the walls of text you're trying to post

>>239000

You can post alright, it's just that when you try posting something that's 100+ characters long the page won't make it go through.

Does anybody have all of the maps?

Can OP make a shitty world map?

Has anyone made a worthwhile world map?

I'm a map fag, and I need this.

>>239252

But other than these two, I haven't gotten much into mapfaggotry. If you're on discord, hit me up, my user ID is #5697.

I don't really wanna post the rough world map in here because it's nothing solid yet (Other than the continent where the CYOA takes place) And it sucks ass because it's too plain.

Also sorry for not saging.

>>239134

Forgot to ask, which spells would you guys like to prioritize? Since you have 5 days left (6 counting the current day) until you reach Netidava.

>>239383

Descriptions:

https://archive.is/JilNn#selection-33929.0-34225.772

>>239384

>1: Spellbook for Fireball

>2: Spellbook for Magic Missile

>3: Spellbook for Herculean Strength

>4: Spellbook for Blinding Speed

>5: Spellbook for Stamina

>6: Spellbook for Drain Respite

>7: Scroll for 『ｐｕｌｓｉｎｇ ｓｅｎｓａｔｉｏｎ』

>8: Scroll for Predator’s Sight

>>239385

Felt like doing a 6d20 rolling challenge, but that'd be too asshole-y from my part. You guys can roll if you want, though; I won't get mad about it.

Also, sorry for making so many posts at once, but this character limit bullshit that's been going on for the last few days won't let me post it all at once…

Rolled 14, 15, 5, 1, 5, 13 = 53 (6d20)

>>239404

Let's make these rolls great again, also read that one book abou Smija's family.

>>239385

1. pulsing sensation/predators sight

this is fucking required, being able to perceive through sound waves/thermal waves is a great advantage, and has many pluses. either that shit or predators sight should be studied and mastered first.

2. blinding speed.

we're a rouge(y) type guy with light armor and a gun. if we can get better dex, that's a great fucking advantage. master this quick so we don't have to deal with the blinding part.

but one question: does blinding speed increase thought process?

if so, this is 2x more important. Still below pulsing sensation/predators sight even then.

in no particular order (though magic missile and stamina are more important)

3. magic missile, basically free ammo. the only reason to study this would be to reduce mana cost.

4. stamina, and I put this low because humans already have good stamina, this would be a BOOST, and nothing more. plus combat so far has been short. mastering this would be great, but the tradeoff basically makes this a nastier toggle-adrenalin.

5. Drain Respite/Herculean Strength

gud for sneak attacks. both can be used behind someone and Herculean can snap/choke someone and Drain can do the same. Drain should have higher priority.

6. Fireball.

despite the attack, if we can focus on not dying, that'd be better for our survival in the long run. still though, its infinite dragonshot that relies on our mana, and that should be taken into consideration.

won't roll, this is just prioritizing spell learning.

>>239578

shit forgot sage

>>239578

The post bullshit is still going on, so I'll make 2 post for this short explanation.

>but one question: does blinding speed increase thought process?

It's in the description, better reaction time could be translated into increased thought process:

>Anyways, the spell increases your speed and agility, allowing you to move faster and have better reaction time, at the cost of a somewhat blurred vision. The spell has three stages, each one allows the user to go faster while decreasing the ill side-effect.

The blurred vision side-effect was supposed to be some sort of mamono mana magical bullshittery causing the user's vision to blur (only when moving though, call it a blatant ripoff of Morrowind's 'Boots of Blinding Speed', minus the momentary blindness); all attribute-boosting spells are supposed to have side-effects which are lessened with each level of mastery attained, I'm certain those will be eventually overcome.

>>239851

Also, as for what the rolls mean in case anyone's wondering:

Should've specified what the stuff gained from the rolls was going to be. I thought you guys wouldn't really want to roll, my bad.

> 1~9 means you learn the 1st mastery spell (Don't worry, nat1 won't make you fail anything, that'd be too heartless.)

> 10~14 means you learn the 2nd mastery spell

> 15~19 means you learn the 3rd mastery spell

> 20 It's supposed to be a secret.

By now you guys should've noticed MC has an innate ability to learn magic, evidenced several times throughout the CYOA.

Rolled 16, 12, 15, 5, 10, 17 = 75 (6d20)

>>239852

1. pulsing sensation

2. preds sight

3. blinding speed

4. magic missile

5. stamina

6. drain respite

>>240276

Alright niggers I'm going out for the holidays so this last update shall be done in episodic releases just like one of them shitty EA DLCs. Because my autism won't allow me to do short updates and I won't have much time to write altogether.

>>241888

And I forgot to sage, check those trips though.

>>241888

Also it's *next* update, not last.

>>243679

So yeah sorry for the awkward episodic updates, but I couldn't just leave you guys without Christmas gifts… Wherever I got, I must also update.

Here's a little Christmas gift I cooked up while being drunk:

http://pastebin.com/94tuc0tw

Merry late Christmas, guys. The rest should be coming soon, most likely around new year's eve.

>>245547

I wrote it drunk, but revised it the day after :^)

>>245252

Happy (late) new year guys. Here's the continuation of our story:

http://pastebin.com/27yKrCN8

Next update should be out soon, whenever I'm back home in a few days, my shitty laptop died so I wont be able to update. Shouldn't be too long though.

>>250050

And fuck me, forgot to sage.

Also:

>The next part of this unnecessarily lengthy update should be out tomorrow.

I meant final. Jesus, it's almost ~20k words long by now.

>>250052

Its ok cant wait to read it :D

>>247086

Here it is, the final part of this rather lengthy update:

http://pastebin.com/2u9731Aj

>What do you do next?

---———————

>Inventory: (-3 water crystals, spent 1 flask of mana potion, -2 boxes of hardtacks and -500gr of jerky)

http://pastebin.com/sxMNxtWV

>Spells: (Gotta add the spell to the list)

http://pastebin.com/bgp3s9cf

>Item Descriptions: (Nothing new)

http://pastebin.com/vGRTMewX

---———————

Cough cough explosives

Hey guys, I’m aware the stuff I write is often lengthy and tiresome to read as well, and I’ve been thinking about writing other things. I’m a bit concerned about a general lack of replies and attention this thread is getting; I’m very aware that I take my time between updates (which is honestly something I can’t help), but it’s rather disheartening to wait several days for a reply.

So if you guys are uninterested in this I suppose it’s time I pulled the plug on this CYOA. But if you guys want me to keep going, leave a reply and depending on the number I’ll see it through to the end. If not, I’ll just make a little announcement that it’s over while putting in spoilers how I intended to end it along with other loose plot strings and twists I was going to resolve.

>>251787

It's just taking me awhile to get to this because I have a lot of shit to do lately. I think it's more to do with posting a pastebin that's influencing people to stop replying if anything.

>>251787

to me it seems like a combination of how fucking long the updates are, and because it doesnt seem like there's been much progress towards the end goal whatever the consensus on that is, my idea is to properly marry smija and then settle down with her somewhere and make lots of apophis daughterus

>>251788

with the pastebin thing, the posting errors have been fixed (for a while now), so you can go back to posting everything in the thread

Finally caught up

Lets go into Netivada to browse their wares, and also get Trevonius something as a gift before he leaves. We should also send Delwen after him while she's invisible to see if he doesn't get into trouble.

>>251787

Just caught up as well And still interested in this adventure

>>251845

I second this might as well browse around a bit

I think I can reach a compromise here.

I know my updates are too fucking long (seriously, haven't seen any other CYOA's with stupidly long updates, with a plot of 5k words+ just to decide whether to say yes or no) and as for the lack of plot progress, I admit there once was a time when there wasn't much progress at all (the smijaboat, several months of just smijaplot shenanigans, honestly I was lost) but right now everyone's on the right plot course, I mean, the story's been moving ever since Otho decided to spare Maja's life and then go to the library and now that the party's at Netidava, the plot remains pushing forward, albeit slowly due to my own autism and inability to mass-produce updates, but it's moving nonetheless.

As for the length of the updates, it's something I'm trying to shorten, but I simply just can't do it. I like to make detailed explanations and give hints on everything, from magic to world politics and geography, as well as try to give the characters a semblance of life with dialogues, little quirks and perks; I don't like stories where the only character in focus is the MC and the MC only, where everyone else is just a cardboard cut simply made to fill an empty space. I mean, I know it's a CYOA centered on the character molded by the readers (with each update and action you take, I strive to give Otho a consistent personality based on the suggestions), but the MC isn't the center of the world; he has to move around the medium and it's those interactions what makes it a CYOA.

I know it's tedious sometimes, but I can't help it. Kinda feels like I'm doing something half-assedly whenever I do an update with less than 1k words.

Bad habits die hard, but I'll try to shorten the updates. I guess I had to vent a bit, thanks for your readership. I'll continue, don't worry.

So yeah I was simply concerned about the lack of feedback I was getting, that's it.